It was just an egg sitting at the edge of the garden, identical in size, colour, etc. to the ones you'd see in the grocery store. Turned out to have a near term bird embryo in it (and we didn't drop it on purpose).
Still slightly haunted by that. Nearly half a century later, I'm an experienced birder and still can't make much sense of that egg being there.
I must be a terrible person because I often care more about the animal dying than the human but as it states here, the sentiment isn't unusual. Patrick Bateman shot, stabbed, axed and beat his way through almost every character he met but taking the puppy out of the movie was absolutely necessary to keep the viewer watching. I often think it's because animals are completely at a human's mercy. They stay loyal without question and when that loyalty and care is used and used to hurt it's awful to even hear about.
Does the kind of animal make a difference, though?
On some reality show (I think it was Fear Factor), they dumped a load of snakes on the contestants, who are screaming and thrashing around. This is all very bad for the snakes. Later on, contestants are biting the abdomens off young camel spiders. Clearly deadly for the spiders, but perfectly fine for TV.
I started thinking how different it would be with more "lovable" animals. Dump a bunch of live puppies onto people who will traumatized and injure them with their reaction, or bite the heads off hamsters.
Herptiles and arthropods are far enough removed from humans that maybe most people don't get the same twinges for them. I guess if the animal is something habitually threatening, too, like a lion.
Do you feel this same kind of double standard exists in fiction? As Denis Leary put it, "We only like the cute animals, don't we?"
Isn’t killing an innocent, instead of an animal, just as effective? Like a child, elderly or disabled person?
I think the reason I’m turned off to the idea of killing and animal is not just because it’s tricky but because of how awful I felt just reading about it. Stephen King made Patrick Hocksteader have that damn fridge and it still haunts me to this day.
Or is that the takeaway? How effective it was in making me dislike Patrick?
Love this. Speaking of DF Wallace, did you ever attempt Infinite Jest, and if so, how far did you make it? Did you ever meet him? I tend to share your sentiments insofar as I prefer his non-fiction.
Approximately how many dead cat stories have you read at workshop over the years?
Not sure if you remember this, but years ago you came to London to give a talk. It was in an old church, decorated with fancy chairs and dimmed lights everywhere. You sat on stage and started telling stories. The interviewer just crossed her arms and legs listening, hypnotised. So was everyone else. Everyone quiet. In the dark.
You told a story of a married couple who is trying to get rid of a cat. They argued about it. Over and over. They agree that the cat will go as soon as the big bag of cat food is empty. Cat food as a gun. You got everyone hooked. Everyone there, waiting to listen how in the end they’d get rid of the poor kitten. Only the cat didn’t disappear from the story. Instead, it got fatter and fatter, and the bag of food never got empty. The woman bought some spare cat food she kept hidden. When her husband wasn’t around she kept refilling the main bag over and over. Her husband didn’t suspect anything. He had hidden a bag of cat food himself, he used to refill the main bag when his wife went to work in the morning.
I've always loved that story.
Sometimes even just the idea of killing an animal can be more than enough to trigger a cat food of emotions.
The killing of the bull in Apocalypse Now was very powerful and I think fits into what you are saying. The death of an animal resonates differently in part because animals are not saddled with sin, original or otherwise.
The article Offensive Play by Malcolm Gladwell in the New Yorker was excellent. "How different are dogfighting and football?" The descriptions of dog fighting were brutally detailed but I think necessary. Beautiful article that used anima abuse to illustrate and showcase the topic of neglect, death, and head injury in the NFL. https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2009/10/19/offensive-play
I've had moments where I was vulnerable, scared, and at the mercy of others and they hurt me in unimaginable ways. I am scared of those moments because of the loss of control and what my own darkness has whispered into me as to what I should do with my tormentors.
Animals remind me of that vulnerable, scared self - anyone hurting them becomes my tormentor.
I imagine other people have that same psychological pull.
Duuuuuuude, Truth is stranger than fiction....when I was about 9 my sister got 2 twin black kittens from her boyfriend. She named them Raven and Redrum (The Shining no fucking lie,100% true) and a few weeks later Raven was found dead outside the window. I was thinking Redrum did it cuz she was jealous until Redrum was found outside the window by me. We lived on the second floor and it was evident from the neck it didn't fall like I was told Raven did and I was beyond devastated. So one of my siblings did it.........
Re: The Girl with Curious Hair, David Foster Wallace — Wow you unlocked a memory for me here. First of all, I’ve never read that story. But what you just described made me come to a realization. In the late 1990s I was an awkward middle schooler who, like many kids, was sent to evangelical Christian camps in the summer. At one such camp a guest minister (a young guy with a bunch of enthusiasm) told a long story about teens killing a puppy. We’re talking about an hour long ordeal here. He described this absolutely brutal torture that ended with them lighting it on fire inside a bag. And then, with all these crying little kids in the sanctuary, he ended the story with something along the lines of ‘and how many of you got more upset about that puppy dying than what they did to Jesus?’ And then all of us felt real horrible after that. That guy totally ripped off David Foster Wallace.
Years later at a different camp another young minister told a horrific rape story that I won’t get into here. It was as stomach turning as any Harmony Korine narrative. But I remember thinking as a little kid how fucked up it was and beginning to question the judgement and intentions of the adults running the show. With those Christian camps it was always this sort of nasty emotional manipulation to prod you into only one conclusion: loving Jesus is your only option. (Right now I’m reading Vonnegut for the first time — ‘But the Gospels actually taught us this: *Before you kill somebody, make absolutely sure he isn’t well connected.* So if goes.’)
The weird thing about summer camps is your parents aren’t around anymore and they don’t know what is actually going on there. They just fill in the gaps and assume it’s not being run by maniacs. Does anyone else here have experience with crazy religious camps? Would love to hear your stories. Summer camps in general have made for some great plots, but I feel like religious fanatics in charge of kids is a storyline that could be tapped into a lot more.
What about the movie "Of Mice and Men?" Lennie never knew his own strength and killed a bunch of animals. A mouse, a dog. But since of his mental disability, we couldn't really hate him for killing those small animals.
But there was one scene with Candy and his dog. People kept telling him he had to put him down because he was so old. And he eventually let someone else take him outside to put down.
Later on in the movie, Candy confesses to George that, "I shouldn't of let no stranger shoot my dog. I would've done it myself." And that line ties in to what happens at the end.
I believe the main character in Welsh’s ‘Maraboustork Nightmares’ actually kills the dog sadistically using tape and fireworks. And, if I recall, it’s not even the same dog that attacked him in his youth—it’s a dog of the seem breed and name.
For curiosity’s sake, what about narratives in which an animal is the antagonist, e.g. ‘Jaws’, ‘Cujo’? I can believe some sympathy being felt for the st Bernard whose been infected with rabies, but the shark? Nae. “Smile you son of a bitch...”
Lot of emotionally charged anecdotes in there. I was reminded of the classic joke about the cat and the mother-in-law on the roof, but in reverse.
http://www.irossco.com/comedy/joke86.htm
It was just an egg sitting at the edge of the garden, identical in size, colour, etc. to the ones you'd see in the grocery store. Turned out to have a near term bird embryo in it (and we didn't drop it on purpose).
Still slightly haunted by that. Nearly half a century later, I'm an experienced birder and still can't make much sense of that egg being there.
I must be a terrible person because I often care more about the animal dying than the human but as it states here, the sentiment isn't unusual. Patrick Bateman shot, stabbed, axed and beat his way through almost every character he met but taking the puppy out of the movie was absolutely necessary to keep the viewer watching. I often think it's because animals are completely at a human's mercy. They stay loyal without question and when that loyalty and care is used and used to hurt it's awful to even hear about.
Does the kind of animal make a difference, though?
On some reality show (I think it was Fear Factor), they dumped a load of snakes on the contestants, who are screaming and thrashing around. This is all very bad for the snakes. Later on, contestants are biting the abdomens off young camel spiders. Clearly deadly for the spiders, but perfectly fine for TV.
I started thinking how different it would be with more "lovable" animals. Dump a bunch of live puppies onto people who will traumatized and injure them with their reaction, or bite the heads off hamsters.
Herptiles and arthropods are far enough removed from humans that maybe most people don't get the same twinges for them. I guess if the animal is something habitually threatening, too, like a lion.
Do you feel this same kind of double standard exists in fiction? As Denis Leary put it, "We only like the cute animals, don't we?"
Isn’t killing an innocent, instead of an animal, just as effective? Like a child, elderly or disabled person?
I think the reason I’m turned off to the idea of killing and animal is not just because it’s tricky but because of how awful I felt just reading about it. Stephen King made Patrick Hocksteader have that damn fridge and it still haunts me to this day.
Or is that the takeaway? How effective it was in making me dislike Patrick?
Love this. Speaking of DF Wallace, did you ever attempt Infinite Jest, and if so, how far did you make it? Did you ever meet him? I tend to share your sentiments insofar as I prefer his non-fiction.
Approximately how many dead cat stories have you read at workshop over the years?
Not sure if you remember this, but years ago you came to London to give a talk. It was in an old church, decorated with fancy chairs and dimmed lights everywhere. You sat on stage and started telling stories. The interviewer just crossed her arms and legs listening, hypnotised. So was everyone else. Everyone quiet. In the dark.
You told a story of a married couple who is trying to get rid of a cat. They argued about it. Over and over. They agree that the cat will go as soon as the big bag of cat food is empty. Cat food as a gun. You got everyone hooked. Everyone there, waiting to listen how in the end they’d get rid of the poor kitten. Only the cat didn’t disappear from the story. Instead, it got fatter and fatter, and the bag of food never got empty. The woman bought some spare cat food she kept hidden. When her husband wasn’t around she kept refilling the main bag over and over. Her husband didn’t suspect anything. He had hidden a bag of cat food himself, he used to refill the main bag when his wife went to work in the morning.
I've always loved that story.
Sometimes even just the idea of killing an animal can be more than enough to trigger a cat food of emotions.
The killing of the bull in Apocalypse Now was very powerful and I think fits into what you are saying. The death of an animal resonates differently in part because animals are not saddled with sin, original or otherwise.
Thanks for the tips.
So, what's worse, depicting the death of a child or a pet?
The article Offensive Play by Malcolm Gladwell in the New Yorker was excellent. "How different are dogfighting and football?" The descriptions of dog fighting were brutally detailed but I think necessary. Beautiful article that used anima abuse to illustrate and showcase the topic of neglect, death, and head injury in the NFL. https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2009/10/19/offensive-play
I've had moments where I was vulnerable, scared, and at the mercy of others and they hurt me in unimaginable ways. I am scared of those moments because of the loss of control and what my own darkness has whispered into me as to what I should do with my tormentors.
Animals remind me of that vulnerable, scared self - anyone hurting them becomes my tormentor.
I imagine other people have that same psychological pull.
Not a productive comment, but I LOVE this post! Thank you!
Duuuuuuude, Truth is stranger than fiction....when I was about 9 my sister got 2 twin black kittens from her boyfriend. She named them Raven and Redrum (The Shining no fucking lie,100% true) and a few weeks later Raven was found dead outside the window. I was thinking Redrum did it cuz she was jealous until Redrum was found outside the window by me. We lived on the second floor and it was evident from the neck it didn't fall like I was told Raven did and I was beyond devastated. So one of my siblings did it.........
I can write about broken lives, smashed faces, even child abuse. Anything but critters in distress. Well, bugs are sorta OK but there are limits.
Re: The Girl with Curious Hair, David Foster Wallace — Wow you unlocked a memory for me here. First of all, I’ve never read that story. But what you just described made me come to a realization. In the late 1990s I was an awkward middle schooler who, like many kids, was sent to evangelical Christian camps in the summer. At one such camp a guest minister (a young guy with a bunch of enthusiasm) told a long story about teens killing a puppy. We’re talking about an hour long ordeal here. He described this absolutely brutal torture that ended with them lighting it on fire inside a bag. And then, with all these crying little kids in the sanctuary, he ended the story with something along the lines of ‘and how many of you got more upset about that puppy dying than what they did to Jesus?’ And then all of us felt real horrible after that. That guy totally ripped off David Foster Wallace.
Years later at a different camp another young minister told a horrific rape story that I won’t get into here. It was as stomach turning as any Harmony Korine narrative. But I remember thinking as a little kid how fucked up it was and beginning to question the judgement and intentions of the adults running the show. With those Christian camps it was always this sort of nasty emotional manipulation to prod you into only one conclusion: loving Jesus is your only option. (Right now I’m reading Vonnegut for the first time — ‘But the Gospels actually taught us this: *Before you kill somebody, make absolutely sure he isn’t well connected.* So if goes.’)
The weird thing about summer camps is your parents aren’t around anymore and they don’t know what is actually going on there. They just fill in the gaps and assume it’s not being run by maniacs. Does anyone else here have experience with crazy religious camps? Would love to hear your stories. Summer camps in general have made for some great plots, but I feel like religious fanatics in charge of kids is a storyline that could be tapped into a lot more.
What about the movie "Of Mice and Men?" Lennie never knew his own strength and killed a bunch of animals. A mouse, a dog. But since of his mental disability, we couldn't really hate him for killing those small animals.
But there was one scene with Candy and his dog. People kept telling him he had to put him down because he was so old. And he eventually let someone else take him outside to put down.
Later on in the movie, Candy confesses to George that, "I shouldn't of let no stranger shoot my dog. I would've done it myself." And that line ties in to what happens at the end.
I believe the main character in Welsh’s ‘Maraboustork Nightmares’ actually kills the dog sadistically using tape and fireworks. And, if I recall, it’s not even the same dog that attacked him in his youth—it’s a dog of the seem breed and name.
For curiosity’s sake, what about narratives in which an animal is the antagonist, e.g. ‘Jaws’, ‘Cujo’? I can believe some sympathy being felt for the st Bernard whose been infected with rabies, but the shark? Nae. “Smile you son of a bitch...”