Unveiling the other: animals, oppression, and visual culture through Nanook of the North
- Autores: Yuyue Sun
- Localización: Animal Ethics Review (AER), ISSN-e 2696-4643, Vol. 4, Nº. 1, 2024
- Idioma: inglés
- Enlaces
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Resumen
This article critically examines early 20th-century exploration cinema, focusing on the portrayal of nonhuman animals and indigenous peoples, using Nanook of the North (1922) as a representative example. The study highlights how these films, emerging during a period of intense Western exploration, established enduring visual conventions that depicted nonhuman animals and indigenous humans as cultural Others. By moving beyond the aesthetic achievements of these films, such as Robert Flaherty's innovative use of long shots, the article brings attention to the ethical concerns related to speciesism and anthropocentrism that have often been overlooked. It explores how the exploitation of nonhuman animals both on-screen and behind the scenes reflects broader speciesist power dynamics, while also challenging the dichotomy between culture and nature as seen in indigenous hunting and gathering societies. The article argues for a re-examination of these films through a multicultural and intersectional lens, bridging the gap between cinema studies and critical animal and media studies, and ultimately seeks to raise public awareness about the protection of animal rights by emphasizing the sentience and moral consideration due to nonhuman animals KeywordsNanook of the North, visual culture, othering, exploration cinema,indigenous peoples, Robert Flaherty, speciesism, hunting.
