Management by Totemization: Whale Symbolism and the Anti-Whaling Campaign
The anti-whaling campaign has been with us for about two decades by now, and - not surprisingly - the arguments against whaling have changed during these years. The ecological argument that the whales are endangered is losing ground as it becomes clear that the stocks of some species of whales can s...
Published in: | ARCTIC |
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Main Author: | |
Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
Language: | English |
Published: |
The Arctic Institute of North America
1993
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Subjects: | |
Online Access: | https://journalhosting.ucalgary.ca/index.php/arctic/article/view/64388 |
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Open Polar |
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University of Calgary Journal Hosting |
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ftunivcalgaryojs |
language |
English |
topic |
Anti-harvesting Economic conditions Environmental protection Public opinion Sustainable economic development Whales Whaling Wildlife management Norway |
spellingShingle |
Anti-harvesting Economic conditions Environmental protection Public opinion Sustainable economic development Whales Whaling Wildlife management Norway Kalland, Arne Management by Totemization: Whale Symbolism and the Anti-Whaling Campaign |
topic_facet |
Anti-harvesting Economic conditions Environmental protection Public opinion Sustainable economic development Whales Whaling Wildlife management Norway |
description |
The anti-whaling campaign has been with us for about two decades by now, and - not surprisingly - the arguments against whaling have changed during these years. The ecological argument that the whales are endangered is losing ground as it becomes clear that the stocks of some species of whales can sustain regulated harvest. Therefore, during the last few years more and more people have argued whaling on moral and ethical grounds. Whales have come to hold a special place in the animal kingdom. Three related themes are addressed in this paper. First, the process by which whales are turned into a symbol is analyzed. By combining characteristics found in a number of different whale species, a picture of a "super-whale" has emerged. Second, it is argued that whales have such potential as symbols because 1) whales are anomalous animals difficult to categorize, 2) they live in salt water, which symbolizes the ultimate purity, 3) they have a long history, and 4) they have qualities that we would like to see in our fellow human beings. It is argued that whales are turned into totems, thus dichotomizing mankind into "good guys" (protectors of whales) or "bad guys" (whalers). Finally, it is shown that by turning whales into totems and imposing an indefinite moratorium on whaling, the resource base of communities in northern Norway has been narrowed significantly, which has serious implications for the viability of these communities.Key words: whales, whaling, management, protectionism, symbolism, totem, rhetoric, impact, northern Norway Les campagnes contre la chasse à la baleine existent depuis plus de 20 ans, et il n'est pas surprenant que les arguments aient changé au cours des années. L'argument écologique voulant que les baleines soient menacées est en train de perdre du terrain car il devient évident que le stock de certaines espèces peut supporter une prise réglementée. Par conséquent, au cours des dernières années, de plus en plus de gens se sont opposés à la chasse à la baleine d'un point de vue moral et éthique. Les baleines en sont venues à occuper une place privilégiée dans le règne animal. Cet article aborde trois thèmes qui sont reliés. En premier lieu, on analyse le processus par lequel les baleines sont transformées en symboles. De la combinaison des caractéristiques d'un certain nombre d'espèces différentes est ressortie l'image d'une «super-baleine». On soutient ensuite que le potentiel symbolique des baleines vient de ce qu'elles 1) sont des animaux sortant de l'ordinaire, difficiles à classer, 2) vivent dans l'eau salée, qui symbolise la pureté absolue, 3) ont une longue histoire, et 4) ont des qualités que l'on aimerait retrouver chez nos confrères humains. On soutient que les baleines sont érigées en totems, ce qui divise l'humanité en «bons» (qui protègent les baleines) et en «méchants» (qui les chassent). On démontre finalement que la transformation des baleines en totems et l'imposition d'un moratoire d'une durée indéterminée ont réduit de façon significative la base de ressources de nombreuses communautés côtières de la Norvège septentrionale, ce qui a de sérieuses conséquences pour la viabilité de ces communautés.Mots clés: baleines, chasse à la baleine, gestion, protectionnisme, symbolisme, totem, rhétorique, impact, Norvège septentrionale |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Kalland, Arne |
author_facet |
Kalland, Arne |
author_sort |
Kalland, Arne |
title |
Management by Totemization: Whale Symbolism and the Anti-Whaling Campaign |
title_short |
Management by Totemization: Whale Symbolism and the Anti-Whaling Campaign |
title_full |
Management by Totemization: Whale Symbolism and the Anti-Whaling Campaign |
title_fullStr |
Management by Totemization: Whale Symbolism and the Anti-Whaling Campaign |
title_full_unstemmed |
Management by Totemization: Whale Symbolism and the Anti-Whaling Campaign |
title_sort |
management by totemization: whale symbolism and the anti-whaling campaign |
publisher |
The Arctic Institute of North America |
publishDate |
1993 |
url |
https://journalhosting.ucalgary.ca/index.php/arctic/article/view/64388 |
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ENVELOPE(140.012,140.012,-66.649,-66.649) ENVELOPE(140.012,140.012,-66.649,-66.649) |
geographic |
Baleine la Baleine Norway |
geographic_facet |
Baleine la Baleine Norway |
genre |
Arctic Northern Norway Norvège septentrionale |
genre_facet |
Arctic Northern Norway Norvège septentrionale |
op_source |
ARCTIC; Vol. 46 No. 2 (1993): June: 97–188; 124-133 1923-1245 0004-0843 |
op_relation |
https://journalhosting.ucalgary.ca/index.php/arctic/article/view/64388/48323 https://journalhosting.ucalgary.ca/index.php/arctic/article/view/64388 |
container_title |
ARCTIC |
container_volume |
46 |
container_issue |
2 |
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1766290775264460800 |
spelling |
ftunivcalgaryojs:oai:journalhosting.ucalgary.ca:article/64388 2023-05-15T14:19:11+02:00 Management by Totemization: Whale Symbolism and the Anti-Whaling Campaign Kalland, Arne 1993-01-01 application/pdf https://journalhosting.ucalgary.ca/index.php/arctic/article/view/64388 eng eng The Arctic Institute of North America https://journalhosting.ucalgary.ca/index.php/arctic/article/view/64388/48323 https://journalhosting.ucalgary.ca/index.php/arctic/article/view/64388 ARCTIC; Vol. 46 No. 2 (1993): June: 97–188; 124-133 1923-1245 0004-0843 Anti-harvesting Economic conditions Environmental protection Public opinion Sustainable economic development Whales Whaling Wildlife management Norway info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion research-article 1993 ftunivcalgaryojs 2022-03-22T21:21:38Z The anti-whaling campaign has been with us for about two decades by now, and - not surprisingly - the arguments against whaling have changed during these years. The ecological argument that the whales are endangered is losing ground as it becomes clear that the stocks of some species of whales can sustain regulated harvest. Therefore, during the last few years more and more people have argued whaling on moral and ethical grounds. Whales have come to hold a special place in the animal kingdom. Three related themes are addressed in this paper. First, the process by which whales are turned into a symbol is analyzed. By combining characteristics found in a number of different whale species, a picture of a "super-whale" has emerged. Second, it is argued that whales have such potential as symbols because 1) whales are anomalous animals difficult to categorize, 2) they live in salt water, which symbolizes the ultimate purity, 3) they have a long history, and 4) they have qualities that we would like to see in our fellow human beings. It is argued that whales are turned into totems, thus dichotomizing mankind into "good guys" (protectors of whales) or "bad guys" (whalers). Finally, it is shown that by turning whales into totems and imposing an indefinite moratorium on whaling, the resource base of communities in northern Norway has been narrowed significantly, which has serious implications for the viability of these communities.Key words: whales, whaling, management, protectionism, symbolism, totem, rhetoric, impact, northern Norway Les campagnes contre la chasse à la baleine existent depuis plus de 20 ans, et il n'est pas surprenant que les arguments aient changé au cours des années. L'argument écologique voulant que les baleines soient menacées est en train de perdre du terrain car il devient évident que le stock de certaines espèces peut supporter une prise réglementée. Par conséquent, au cours des dernières années, de plus en plus de gens se sont opposés à la chasse à la baleine d'un point de vue moral et éthique. Les baleines en sont venues à occuper une place privilégiée dans le règne animal. Cet article aborde trois thèmes qui sont reliés. En premier lieu, on analyse le processus par lequel les baleines sont transformées en symboles. De la combinaison des caractéristiques d'un certain nombre d'espèces différentes est ressortie l'image d'une «super-baleine». On soutient ensuite que le potentiel symbolique des baleines vient de ce qu'elles 1) sont des animaux sortant de l'ordinaire, difficiles à classer, 2) vivent dans l'eau salée, qui symbolise la pureté absolue, 3) ont une longue histoire, et 4) ont des qualités que l'on aimerait retrouver chez nos confrères humains. On soutient que les baleines sont érigées en totems, ce qui divise l'humanité en «bons» (qui protègent les baleines) et en «méchants» (qui les chassent). On démontre finalement que la transformation des baleines en totems et l'imposition d'un moratoire d'une durée indéterminée ont réduit de façon significative la base de ressources de nombreuses communautés côtières de la Norvège septentrionale, ce qui a de sérieuses conséquences pour la viabilité de ces communautés.Mots clés: baleines, chasse à la baleine, gestion, protectionnisme, symbolisme, totem, rhétorique, impact, Norvège septentrionale Article in Journal/Newspaper Arctic Northern Norway Norvège septentrionale University of Calgary Journal Hosting Baleine ENVELOPE(140.012,140.012,-66.649,-66.649) la Baleine ENVELOPE(140.012,140.012,-66.649,-66.649) Norway ARCTIC 46 2 |