Best movie ever… Happy Feet! Ok, well maybe not quite, but it is one of my personal favorites. I mean who could resist with all of those cute penguins running around. But the fact that it is an animated children’s film does not detract from its relevance as a fairly accurate depiction of the plight of many species in habitats around the globe that are increasingly being encroached upon by humans. When the protagonist, Mumble the penguin, sets out to find the culprit responsible for the fish drought that had been decimating his clan of penguins and ultimately ends up being captured by humans and placed in wild life prison the zoo, I was compelled to consider how my actions affect the environment at large. This film raises many important questions about the relationship between human progress and animals in the natural environment which, depending upon how we as a society choose to address them, will determine the viability of many species.
Industry is a vital part of the economic system that we have grown accustomed to, however, 9 times out of 10 its existence jeopardizes the natural environment. A good example of this is the oil industry. Oil spills are a reality and a fairly regular occurrence. These events have devastating effects on the natural environment surrounding the oil rigs and miles in the distance. In the film there was no oil spill, however, the abandoned rigs and housing areas for people who worked on the rigs caused problems for the penguins. Not only did the construction affect the natural habitat and migration patterns for the penguins, but trash left behind by the crews polluted the area and even strangled one of them nearly to death. Humans entering environmentally sensitive areas for economic purposes may be a necessary evil for now, however, we must take additional steps to insure that the least amount of damage possible is incurred by the environment.
In our sometimes overzealous quest for knowledge we intrude upon the natural environment to study it. While this may seem like a noble quest, its enactment many times show no compassion for the animals it effects. Many studies involve animal testing in which animals are removed from their natural environment and caged so they may be monitored. However, we can all agree that this is devastating for the lives of the animals involved. The protagonist of the film, Mumble the penguin, is captured by humans while in pursuit of the ship carrying the oil rig workers that were seemingly responsible for the fish drought in his habitat. They examine him and place him in a zoo in a traumatizing manner that leaves Mumble disoriented, forlorn, and longing to return home. So much so in fact that he begins to have delusions. The main point here is not that we should stop studying animals, but rather we should avoid test tube studies and view them from the natural environment.
Additionally, the human disregard for the environment or the animals extends further in the way that we ignore environmental issues until it is nearly too late or it becomes fashionable to care. While an array of environmental issues exist, only a few immerge to the forefront as they become part of the popular media for one reason or another. Mumble the penguin only is able to help his penguin clan through his unique ability to dance. If Mumble had not been able to gain human interest through this ability, his clan would have certainly become extinct because no one was interested or aware of the effects of the oil drilling in the area. Why does it take a miraculous or out of the ordinary event for us to care about how we are destroying the natural environment? Although we can not negate all of the negative externalities of human activity, we should make ourselves at least more aware of the problems so that we may find more solutions.
The environment is an issue that more and more people are taking notice of and media outlets such as films are helping to spread awareness. However, if people don’t understand the message, is it really helping? Happy Feet is an animated children’s film, but it does outline many problems that the environment faces as human society continues to evolve. The true test of this type of environmentally aware media will be to see how much action it elicits from those that view it.
Happy Feet... for the Environment
Posted by Britney Baker at 12:22 PM
Labels: environment, penguins, public square
3 Comments:
I did some research about the effectiveness of the large-audience environmental film (like Happy Feet) for my own blog and found that more often than not these films, no matter how important their messages, or how many people see them, rarely cause significant change. They do, however, cause awareness, which is obviously better than not. Small-audience environmental films, however, tend to cause bigger or at least more dramatic change.
I feel that it is difficult for people to receive such strong messages from animated children's films. I mean, people go to those movies for a light-hearted enjoyable time. They do not expect, or really want, a large crisis to be confronted in these films.
This reminds me of Wall-E. I had heard that it was a cute movie, so thought it would be. While it was cute, I found it very depressing. It sends a strong message about humans' carelessness for the earth and themselves. I was not expecting this.
While I got the message, I did not feel inclined to act on it because I was shocked at how depressing a cute little Disney movie could be.
HI! I just found your blog, and I LOVE IT. Another avid penguin lover I'm so happy. HAhahahhahaha YAY. I love the African Penguins and it's very cool you have a photo of them here...they do happen to be covered in oil though, I have that picture too.. Anyway I just wanted to say hi, because I think it's awesome you love penguins too.
- Rachel Cheree.
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