From Anthrozoös, vol. 16, #3 (Winter 2003)
Book Reviews
The Mythical Zoo:An
Encyclopedia of Animals in World Myth, Legend, and Literature
Boria Sax. Denver,
(hardback).
Highlighting the extraordinary, expressive role of animals in human cognition, the famous dictum of Claude Levi-Strauss that animals are “good to think” as well as good to eat (1963, p. 89), holds true not only for preindustrial cultures but also for highly complex societies, and not only for the past, but for the present. Central to the study of human interactions with animals is the role of animals in human thought—the revelation that animals are not mere biological entities, but rather represent the sum total of their actual being as it is merged with symbolic attributions and human perceptions that often originated in the far-distant past. Therefore, “whenever a human being confronts a living creature, whether in actuality or by reflection, the ‘real life’ animal is accompanied by an inseparable image of that animal’s essence that is made up of, or influenced by, preexisting individual, cultural, or societal conditioning. Thus ‘nature,’ as represented by the biological and behavioral traits of a particular animal, becomes transformed into a cultural construct that may or may not reflect the empirical reality concerning that animal, but generally involves much embellishment” (Lawrence 1997, p. 1).
In his Preface to The Mythical Zoo, Boria Sax explains: “To define a kind of animal strictly in terms of biology is too narrow, too technical, and too restrictive.” He urges that we “define each sort of animal as a tradition,” which “includes stories from myth, legend, and literature. All of these, with the love and fear they may engender, are part of an intimate relationship with human beings that has been built up over millennia... . Tradition links animals to the ideas, practices, and events that make up human culture” (p. xi). The author has succeeded in his intent not only to produce a book for use as a reference, but also to “document how profoundly animals and their symbolism are integrated into human values. It is important for us to be aware of this today’ Sax believes, “as we confront the massive extinction of familiar varieties and the genetic engineering of new ones” (p. viii). He observes:
“Perhaps the greatest of the many ethical problems faced by human beings at the beginning of the new millennium is deciding the extent to which we are entitled to alter the natural world for our convenience?’ As humans, we now have “far more power than wisdom. The idea of every animal as a tradition will not give us a simple answer to our dilemmas, but it will at least provide a way in which to think of them... .To preserve an animal as a tradition, we must know it intimately, we must be familiar with the lore that has grown up around the creature since time immemorial” (p. xi).
In compiling this encyclopedic work, “deciding what to leave out” was difficult. Sax’s “policy has been to emphasize depth rather than breadth,” in order to “convey the ideas underlying the treatment of animals in myth, legend, and related aspects of human culture, rather than simply give bits of disconnected information” (p. viii). The entries for each animal or group of animals are indeed full and rich. Species included are: Ant; Ape and Monkey; Ass, Mule, and Camel; Bat; Bear; Beaver, Porcupine, Badger, and Miscellaneous Rodents; Bee and Wasp; Beetle; Bull and Cow; Butterfly and Moth; Cat; Cock and Hen; Crocodile; Crow, Raven, and Other Corvids; Cuckoo, Nightingale, Lark, Woodpecker, and Other Musical Birds; Dog; Dove and Pigeon; Eagle; Elephant; Falcon and Hawk; Fly, Louse, and Flea; Fox, Jackal, and Coyote; Frog and Toad; Grasshopper, Locust, Cricket, Cicada, and Mantis; Hare and Rabbit; Hart and Hind; Hedgehog; Heron, Ibis, Crane, and Stork; Hippopotamus; Horse; Hyena; Lion, Tiger, Panther, and Jaguar; Ostrich, Hummingbird, Parrot, and Peacock; Owl; Pig; Rat and Mouse; Rhinoceros; Salmon and Carp; Scorpion; Seagull, Albatross, and Other Seabirds; Seal and Dolphin; Sheep and Goat; Snake, Lizard, and Related Animals; Sparrow; Spider; Starfish, Clam, Octopus, and Other Creatures of the Sea Floor; Swallow; Swan, Goose, and Duck; Turtle and Tortoise; Whale; Wolf; Worm; Wren and English Robin. Following each entry the author has provided a list of selected references that will be very useful to researchers or readers who seek additional information about a particular animal or group of animals. There are no footnotes, but references for direct quotes are cited within the text. Well-chosen illustrations from historical, literary, and mythological sources enrich the descriptions for some of the species.
Many people may buy this book to use as a reference tool or for browsing, but those with an interest in knowing animals at a deeper level that includes traditional perspectives may well end up reading the whole text with enjoyment while expanding their knowledge about the history, mythology, literary attributions, and cultural values represented by various species. Sax reveals that, “Often we are so impressed with the success of science that we forget it is merely one aspect of a larger tradition....The names we give animals carry intricate expectations and assumptions. As we learn of the traditions that have grown up around animals, they regain something of the magical quality that they had in cave paintings of prehistoric times” (p. x). “Like many species of animals and plants, the traditions that surround animals are vanishing” (p. xi). This book makes clear the urgency of preserving these meaningful traditions for the future. In this age of science, many people disregard the significance of myth and symbolism. And yet it would behoove even strict scientists who deal with animals solely on a pragmatic basis to open their minds to the non-biological dimensions of the species they work with, take into consideration the complex meanings they embody, and attempt to understand how they are perceived. The Mythical Zoo is an ideal source for obtaining this kind of knowledge.
Some selected examples will
serve to whet the reader’s appetite for discovering more of the wealth of
fascinating and valuable data in The Mythological Zoo. Coverage ranges from the
surprising origin of Smokey the Bear as an icon of protection of wilderness, to
an in-depth history of the meaning of ants from Aesop’s Fables up through Henry
David Thoreau’s account in Walden of a baffle he observed between “red
republicans” and “black imperialists” (p. 3). On the basis of ant behavior, Sax
wisely suggests: “Perhaps those who believe there are no more heroes today
should spend more time around anthills” (p. 3). Worldwide contradictory images
of bats are discussed in terms of their difficulty of classification into neat
categories of bird or beast. A particularly full and engaging entry reveals the
history, legend, and symbolism of beavers, often considered “the most civilized
of creatures,” and “perhaps the most intelligent after man” (pp. 29—30). Yet
ironically, these remarkable cognitive attributions did not prevent the species
from being hunt ed to the verge of extinction in the
Other points of special interest include the unusual role of gender in classifying bovines, the universality of butterflies and moths as symbols of the human soul, and life cycles of caterpillars to butterflies as models for death and resurrection. The cat’s association with femininity, its secret wild ness, and its purported magical qualities are documented. Crows’ and ravens’ association with death and prophecy, as well as the corvids’ unusual intelligence, resilience, and ubiquity, have made them the subject of special regard from Biblical times to the present. In Native American lore, they often take the role of sage or trickster. Sax includes consideration of the political use of animals, as exemplified by the American icons of the dem ocratic donkey and republican elephant, as well as the Nazis’ symbolic use of pigs for Jews and Art Spiegelman’s recent portrayal of victims in con centration camps as mice. Readers learn that in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, popular naturalist Georges-Louis Leclerc de Buffon espoused the idea that “all aniinals once had a civil society with laws, before they were murdered and enslaved by human beings”(p. xviii).
The common phenomenon of anthropomorphism is exemplified by the use of cartoon character “Joe Camel” which was “so effective in selling cigarettes to teenagers that massive protests forced the tobacco company to discontinue ads with him in 1997” (P. xix). Contrasting views of woodpeckers are represented by the ancient legend of a nurturant wood pecker feeding the orphaned twins, Romulus and Remus, who grew up to be the founders of Rome, as opposed to the violent and frequently immoral trickster, Woody Woodpecker, in contemporary cartoons. The sounds of different bird songs as reliable indicators of the time of day play a role in Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet and indicate the familiarity with avian behavior that was once a common part of people’s daily experience but which has virtually disappeared from modem life.
The elephant is a remarkable
animal who “seems to share with humans an alienation
from the natural world;’ and was singled out by Pliny the Elder as “closest to
man as regards intelligence” (pp. 104, 105). Throughout the ages, elephants
have been credited with holding religious beliefs and burying their dead.
Recent studies have revealed that elephants communicate with ultrasound. Frogs
are particularly rich in symbolic and mythological meanings, and are prominent
in fairy tales, especially as representatives of metamorphosis. The lore of
horses is traced from ancient
Sax points out that the present increasing secularization of animals fosters their ruthless exploitation in factory farms, industry, and genetic engineering. Yet paradoxically, at the same time, “our current estrangement from animals seems to have revived some of the numinous qualities they had in the archaic past.... Now the discipline of ecology makes animals guardians of the ecosystem, and their fate is linked with that of human beings....Every animal is a tradition, and together animals are a vast part of our heritage as human beings.” He asserts: “no animal completely lacks humanity, yet no person is ever completely human... .We merge with animals through magic, metaphor, or fantasy.... When we contemplate the inner life of animals, myth is finally our only truth” (pp. xix, xx). The validity of these revelations explains why this book is such an important and timely contribution to the field of human—animal interactions. Without the kind of knowledge that Sax has so painstakingly gathered from history, legend, mythology, and literature, we can never fully understand the nature of animals or of human beings and the complex relationships they have shared since the beginning of time and still continue to share.
References
Lawrence, E. A. 1997. Hunting the Wren: Transformation of Bird to Symbol.
Levi-Struass, C. 1963. Totemism.
Elizabeth Atwood Lawrence, VIVID, PhD
Professor Emerita, Department of Environmental and Population Health
Editor’s Note: Sadly, Betty died in November this year: We will all miss
her greatly. An obituary will appear in a future edition of Anthrozoos.