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The story I listened to was about Ota Benga who was held in an exhibition at a zoo in the Bronx. He was 22 years old and a member of the Batwa people who were pygmies. He was brought over by an American explorer with a few other pygmies. They were thought to be "interesting" to look at because they were very small. The average height of a male was the height of an eleven year old boy. People would come from all over to see these pygmies and they thought it was so cool to laugh and look at them. However, when they took them back to Africa Ota did not fit in so he came back to the states and was was put in an ape exhibit where he stayed for a year. Everyday people would stare at him and often times they would just come to laugh. The bad thing was that the people who put him in the exhibit thought that they were doing something good, they did not realize their actions at all. Finally, a family took him in but, he just could not adjust to the everyday world so he shot himself. The last thing he said was that he wanted his soul to go back to Africa where it belonged.
It amazes me how man can treat man. How they can look at one another and believe that they were better then the other person, so much better that they can put the other in an ape exhibit, keep each other as slaves, or put each other in concentration camps. This just amazes me. I do not understand what makes people just decide they are better then someone else, and I do not think I ever will.
Ota was part of a time period where the theory of evolution was heated and they used him as if he was the void between ape and man that had been missing. Even though I can see why they might think that can they not also think that he is a man that deserves to be treated like one. Listening to this made me very disturbed and I would hope that this story could set an example for the future so that it does not repeat itself. I believe Ota deserved a better life, a life back in Africa. To hear his story click here.
The story of Ota relates to everything we have been doing this year because it shows how times have changed. Just as times have changed from the times of Greek gods to the times of arranged marriages in Romeo and Juliet. In the case of Ota's story times have definitely changed for the better. It also relates to Romeo and Juliet because of how the Capulets treat the Montegues. Both houses think they are better then the other so they constantly fight with each other. This relates directly to the title of my post "what man does to man." It hurts to think that we will never live in a world that has people think of eachother equally, but we can try to make it better by trying to do better as an individual. To learn more about Ota Benga's story click here
It amazes me how man can treat man. How they can look at one another and believe that they were better then the other person, so much better that they can put the other in an ape exhibit, keep each other as slaves, or put each other in concentration camps. This just amazes me. I do not understand what makes people just decide they are better then someone else, and I do not think I ever will.
Ota was part of a time period where the theory of evolution was heated and they used him as if he was the void between ape and man that had been missing. Even though I can see why they might think that can they not also think that he is a man that deserves to be treated like one. Listening to this made me very disturbed and I would hope that this story could set an example for the future so that it does not repeat itself. I believe Ota deserved a better life, a life back in Africa. To hear his story click here.
The story of Ota relates to everything we have been doing this year because it shows how times have changed. Just as times have changed from the times of Greek gods to the times of arranged marriages in Romeo and Juliet. In the case of Ota's story times have definitely changed for the better. It also relates to Romeo and Juliet because of how the Capulets treat the Montegues. Both houses think they are better then the other so they constantly fight with each other. This relates directly to the title of my post "what man does to man." It hurts to think that we will never live in a world that has people think of eachother equally, but we can try to make it better by trying to do better as an individual. To learn more about Ota Benga's story click here
~♥~ Braven Gilmore Girl
4 comments:
I listened to that too, and it just amazed me! When it talked about how they should him off at the world fair then made him an exhibit. Think how you would feel if you were shown off to people just cause you were thought to have been interesting? Weird. Then live in an exhibit at a Zoo with monkeys. Creepy. The man that brought him over must of been insane.
I listened to that too, and it just amazed me! When it talked about how they should him off at the world fair then made him an exhibit. Think how you would feel if you were shown off to people just cause you were thought to have been interesting? Weird. Then live in an exhibit at a Zoo with monkeys. Creepy. The man that brought him over must of been insane.
I totally agree with everything you said in your post. The way people treat each other, not just back then but now as well, is very disturbing. I don't think it's fair how people can just see people as not a human and not as good as them. People underestimate each other all the time just by their race or religion or beliefs and it just takes my breath everytime. That just shows those people have no respect for others nor do they care to learn how to respect. People today just need to learn and understand that not everyone is like them and that they aren't perfect. No one is.
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