Origins of A Stereotype Final

Sadia Quddus

Professor Bump

E603B

March 29, 2011

Origins of a Stereotype: Black Cats             

She leapt lightly onto the surface, and reared back in surprise. The ground was smooth and uneven! And there was an odd bright screen right before her. She pawed it in confusion and looked up as laughter bubbled up around her. Humans milled about her, dressed fancily and smelling wonderfully warm. She wasn’t sure what was happening, or what Thanksgiving meant, but it didn’t particularly matter.

Her name was Harriet, she was a black cat, and she was home.

Harriet at home.

This happy ending is unfortunately not one that holds true for many black cats and dogs. According to a 2002 study done by the Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science, “black cats were about half as likely to be adopted as tabby cats and two-thirds less likely than whites.”[1] Animal shelters like the one Harriet and many like her come from house a notable surplus of black animals; this is a direct cause of ignorance and superstition. Black cats are unlucky, or so the saying goes; they are bad omens, they are mean, they are plain. This is the common view of black cats in American society, and it is so prevalent that it is unnoticeable. The association between black cats and devilry is so ingrained into our collective psyche that we rarely recognize its consequences on animals. From pop culture to popular holidays, the stereotype is referenced and perpetrated through literature, film, anarchic symbolism, and elements of the entertainment industry. Though the origins of the stereotype are not common knowledge, the idioms that seem as old as time just fit in with our collective cultural vocabulary: Black cats are an omen of ill tidings, the sign of the devil, or a witch’s familiar. This begs the question: why? Why do these stereotypes exist? What exactly is wrong with the color black that leads to discrimination against black cats? Is there a significant difference in how people adopt cats of various colors? Is this stereotype against black cats overdramatized? How exactly do other nations perceive black cats? And is fur color any indication of personality? 

Discrimination against black cats has existed for centuries in most Western European nations and in North America. In the United Kingdom, however, black cats are actually considered harbingers of good fortune. Wives of British fishermen kept black cats in order to ensure the safe return of their husbands from sea, and black cats are known as matagots, or “magician’s cats” in southern France, where they are thought to bring good luck to caring owners.[2] The same is true in Japan and Australia, where sighting a black cat is a good omen, and in Scotland, a black cat found on the porch is considered a lucky incident. Amongst domestic creatures and pets, cats in general are victims of many stereotypes, mostly negative. For example, the folks in the Netherlands refused to allow cats to enter any room where a private conversation was occurring, because they believed that cats were gossip-mongers spreading their information all throughout the town. On the other hand, the Italians believed that hearing a cat sneeze brought good fortune upon all those lucky enough to hear it, and the Egyptians essentially worshiped felines. Cats were considered so sacred that any human who killed one would receive the same as a consequence. Egyptian hieroglyphs commonly featured felines, and pharaohs ensured that cats were mummified and buried alongside them or in cat graveyards. They were treated with a degree of respect comparable to holy cows in the Hindu religion.

A statue of a respected Egyptian feline.

Black cats were unreasonably discriminated against even in England, despite the more modern notion of black cats as good omens. In ancient times, cats were considered a sign of fertility and respected as divinities. However, with the spread of Christianity, the pagan gods were all converted into demons or blasphemous creatures of some sort. This initiated the turn in tide towards how cats were seen in general. One Greek myth taught that a woman named Galenthias was turned into a cat and became the “Dark Mother,” or goddess of witchcraft. This indicates a clear fear and mistrust of cats and associates them directly to evil and witches. The Middle Ages was not a time in which magic was seen in a positive light, and the origins of human fear of felines can be traced to this time.  This was a period of darkness and ignorance, commonly considered a step backward in human culture and intellect. For this reason, this era was full of legend and fear. Single women who chose to shelter cats for companionship were considered witches and shunned by villagers. Sometime in the late 1500s witch persecution peaked significantly, and cats were direct victims of the torture, cruelty, and suffering these women were subjected to.

A witch and her familiar? Or two free spirited companions?

 Fear of darkness and evil led to the stigmatization of the color black. On top of the general fear of cats only exacerbated the fear of black cats. More than any other feline, black cats in particular were considered witches’ familiars. Familiars are defined as creatures that aid witches in their questionable and frightening shenanigans. There was also a pervading belief that witches could transfigure themselves into black cats; this was used as a justification for cat killings. It was easier to kill an animal than to kill a “being” that looked human despite its supposedly demonic origins. Witch-burning was a common practice, and their black cats were as often as not burned alongside the owners.

Because Halloween stems from pagan practices, these fears have carried over to the modern day, though in a different form. Though these fears are no longer explicitly religious in nature, they are instead heavily commercialized, and so the symbol of the black cat as a representation of evil pervades our culture. In the play The Master and Margarita, the character of Behemoth is an enormous black cat that is part of the Devil’s entourage. We saw this play firsthand, performed by the Broccoli Project with our very own Joe/Bengal as the lead. Edgar Allan Poe’s The Black Cat is described nastily by his master as “the hideous beast whose craft seduced me into murder.”[3] The black cat is even a symbol of anarchy. The Industrial Workers of the World union chose this symbol precisely for the fear it instills. Robert Chaplin, one the union’s leaders, described that using the black cat was indicative of sabotage, and their purpose was to use the black cat to sabotage the superstitious boss.

Industrial Workers of the World

In pop culture and the entertainment industry, black cats are definitely the cat of choice in scary movies and anything to do with witches. I’ve included a clip of the classic Halloween comedic movie, Hocus Pocus, in which the three witches turn the main character into a black cat. Although he is clearly the hero of the story, simply because this is a Halloween movie and the witches are casting a spell, he is turned into a black cat. Any other color would not mesh well with our cultural expectations.

[video]

I’ve also found a song by the Mayday Parade titled Black Cat. The lyrics are included in the video and indicate the idea of the black cat as a sort of anarchist. Maybe a relationship anarchist, but a destructive figure nonetheless. The Janet Jackson song Black Cat also references a similar relationship figure.

[video]

 Although modern day practices are exponentially tamer than the Medieval rituals of All Hallow’s Eve, it is thought that there is a significant amount of danger for black cats connected to this holiday, and pet shelters have taken notice and preventative action.

There is a common but notable perception of danger to black cats during the Halloween holidays, for myths of Halloween pranks pulled by people who don’t consider the creatures they mistreat to be living beings are in circulation. Many adoption agencies have reported that after the month of October, a substantial number of black cats are returned with the claim that “it just didn’t work out.” This is thought to be code for, “I am done using this living being for a prop for my Halloween decorations.” Clearly this is unhealthy for any creature – human beings themselves deal very poorly with being shuffled between foster homes. With this combination of ignorance, inconsiderateness, and downright cruelty, many animal shelters and adoption agencies shut down the adoption process for black felines for the entire month of October.

Though the intentions here are pure, the unforeseen consequence is a major problem. According to an article in the National Geographic, stories of black cat torture are simply an urban legend. The incidents are rare and far between, and are caused by mentally unstable or immature individuals. This is not enough to justify halting adoption, especially because shelters should carefully screen potential adopters to ensure no harm will befall adopted animals. Banning adoption of black cats for an entire month creates a huge pileup of cats that need to be adopted and simply slows down the process of finding these creatures permanent homes.[4] Many agencies continue to allow adoptions of black cats, as adoption is done on an individual case basis, but are much more thorough and cautious during this time.

 Black cats really aren’t unlucky for anyone but themselves: they suffer the misfortune of centuries of misplaced fear and prejudice. These days, much of the lack of attention black cats experience is attributed to their “plainness” and ubiquity. There are so many black cats, especially in shelters, that one cannot easily stand out for another, unlike lighter cats. In addition, it is difficult to photograph black cats in a flattering manner to put on websites, because the black fur deceptively lacks luster through the camera lens. However, according to an article in the NewScientist, the black fur, a genetic mutation, is actually a genetic edge. Black coats have developed in many different cat species, indicating this to be an evolutionary advantage. Besides hunting camouflage, the color is also indicative of high levels of melanin, which helps them resist disease, heart attack, and stroke.[5] If these facts were known, and the public was made aware of the plight that black cats (and dogs) face, many more lives could be saved. After all, fur color is not at all indicative of personality type. Rather than basing their choice on appearance, pet shelter volunteers advise that potential adopters choose a cat that they connect with, a cat whose personality clicks with theirs, regardless of color.[6]

Fortunately, organizations like the Black Cat Rescue have taken the initiative to save innocent lives. Based in Boston, they specialize in black cats, providing quality foster care and actively seeking to place them in permanent families throughout the area. They are a no-kill organization, and help out other shelters by advising them how to best “market” their black cats. They are known throughout the city as the authority and leader in breaking down the discrimination that black cats face.

Although in general this stigma may exist, it is important to note that on an individual basis, many people adore black cats. Our very own Charlotte/Elephant has a beautiful black kitty named Harriet! As awareness and acceptance increase, the plight of supposedly unlucky black cats can shift towards the positive.[7]

Total Word Count: 1897

Without Quotes: 1878

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[1] Barbara Kohn, “Hard to Place Black Cats Get Help from Rescue Group Dedicated to Their Cause,” Examiner, July 19, 2010,  http://www.examiner.com/cats-in-national/hard-to-place-black-cats-get-help-from-rescue-group-dedicated-to-their-cause/.

[2] Lana, Berkowitz. “Black Cats: How About Some Good Luck?” The Houston Chronicle, April 15, 2009, http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/pets/6373529.html/.

[3] Emily Muhlhausen. “Black Cats Unlucky at Shelters.” The Seattle Times, April 28 2008, http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/living/2004374431_blackcats28.html/.

[4] Maryann Mott. “Ritual Cat Sacrifices a Halloween Myth, Experts Say.” National Geographic, Oct. 26, 2007, http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/10/071026-halloween-cat_2.html/.

[5] Shaoni Bhattacharya. “Black Cats May Be the More Fortunate Felines.” NewScientist, March 4 2003,  http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn3459-black-cats-may-be-the-more-fortunate-felines.html/.

[6] Kelly Kaczala. “Black Cats Less Likely to be Adopted at Shelters.” The Press,  December 12, 2008, http://www.presspublications.com/from-the-press/1136-black-cats-less-likely-to-be-adopted-at-shelters

[7] Barbara Kohn, “Hard to Place Black Cats Get Help from Rescue Group Dedicated to Their Cause,” Examiner, July 19, 2010,  http://www.examiner.com/cats-in-national/hard-to-place-black-cats-get-help-from-rescue-group-dedicated-to-their-cause/.

Bluest Eye 2

She was never able, after her education in the movies, to look at a face and not assign it some category in the scale of absolute beauty, and the scale was one she absorbed in full from the silver screen." (122)

Beauty is dangerous. Beauty is arrogance. Beauty is love. Beauty is power.

There is so much that contributes to beauty, and so much that beauty can be defined as. How do humans manage to somehow come up with a single standard for something that is inherently undefinable? Sure, scientists and psychologists have come up with certain fundamental rules that makes a face attractive to all humans, or a body attractive for caveman, survivalist, reproductive reasons, but when we judge a face, we don't think about those things. When we look at a person and judge solely their physical beauty, there is usually something that stands out to an individual, or perhaps the lack of a singularity standing out. But there aren't truly rules for what we perceive to be beautiful. When people are in love, the person they love is going to be infinitely more beautiful to them than to everyone else, because they know everything about that person, they know everything that makes them special, and they care about that person to an intense degree. There's something other than physical beauty, something about their inner selves, something about intimacy and care that intensifies physical beauty. But only to certain people. Beauty is subjective. 

And yet, we somehow manage to find a scale to judge it by. 

"Them pictures gave me a lot of pleasure, but it made coming home hard, and looking at Cholly hard. I don't know. I 'member one time I went to see Clark Gable and Jean Harlow. I fixed my hair up like I'd seen hers on a magazine." (123)

 Beauty is power.

Honestly, its not at all difficult to see why beauty is so coveted. Attractive people tend to get their way, not necessarily because they try to (in fact, they DON'T have to try to get their way, is the idea), but because everyone around them wants to impress them. There is something about when an attractive person walks into a room - unless a person is conscious about their behavior, they are bound to take part in an ancient mating ritual dance. People want to attract an attractive person, because then they'll know that THEY themselves are attractive. They have succeeded in "scoring" a beauty, so they themselves must be beautiful. But the truth is, beauty doesn't necessarily equate to virtue. Beauty doesn't equate to happiness. Some "physical beauty" can be seemingly perfect, but marred by hardness, by sadness, by emptiness or anger. Some people who are not traditionally beautiful, not someone a whole room will take notice of, may be the most fascinating, deepest thinkers, talented, kind and quirky people. That is not to say that beautiful people are not any of the above. In fact, maybe the most beautiful people don't even have to consider their appearance and are completely nonchalant about their looks, but that is possibly because they've never had to worry about it. They have grown up with such natural beauty that they are used to it and don't allow it the affect who they are and what they care about.

"One of the reasons that we cannot even imagine an ugly Jesus is the assumption that the outside of a person reflects the inside. In western civiliaztion, both Greek and Hebrew traditions at times identify a bodily stigma such as a mark and a scar as punishment for breaking the laaws of the culture, as 'a manifestation of an inner ugliness, a spiritual failure.'" (369)

Eyes that launched a journey.

A couple of years ago, National Geographic had a special edition about the journalist who had taken the iconic shot of the Afghani girl in the photo above. THe photo had been taken in a refugee camp in Afghanistan, and the photographer had been so captivated by the nameless girl's striking, beautiful eyes, expressive of her story and the life she was enduring, that he knew he had to find her again. There was a long journey that took several years, but he finally tracked her down.

This story, of the eyes that launched a journey, reminded me of Helen of Troy, and the face that launched a thousand ships. Although for Troy, beauty was simply an excuse to conquer territory, this story is actually a case of beauty captivating a man, and a nation. The issue was iconic and an instant hit in the States, because the eyes, the rough, dirty young face was indicative of another nation, a people's suffering. Mostly though, the girl's beauty shone through in her fearlessness. She was a survivor, and the photo indicated that. True, perhaps it IS that she has beautiful eyes. But lots of models on magazines have beautiful eyes. This girl, however, had a story. The story was told through her eyes, through her expression, through her face, through her challenging gaze.

It really is what was inside her that made her truly beautiful.

MBTI

This was not set up, I promise.

The bad: “INFJs put a tremendous amount of faith into their instincts and intuitions. This is something of a conflict between the inner and outer worlds, and may result in the INFJ not being as organized as other Judging types tend to be. Or we may see some signs of disarray in an otherwise orderly tendency, such as a consistently messy desk.”

The above photo is one I just took of my desk in my dorm. I'm hardly ever in my dorm. You can easily imagine then, how much crazier my studio desk is. Although it looks like my possessions sort of exploded over my desk, there's still some kind of order to this chaos. And that's pretty much how I work. I tend to go through cleaning sprees periodically, in which everything will finally get organized and put away, but that order consistently disintegrates into a mess. I started out this year consistently keeping up with my planner and calendar, but at this point, I'm not sure where that even is. I DO keep a journal and pen with me at all times so I can write down anything I need to remember, but I've definitely noticed that I'm relying on my intuition more. Which is honestly a bit of a problem at times - I have too much in my head to remember everything. Unfortunately, I've consistently forgotten to change this habit, sooo, that is definitely something I need to work on. Especially because Professor Bump's class is FULL of things that need to be remembered. THere are lots of details and due dates and activity reminders - I don't think I can keep track of it all. As an INFJ, I go through periods where I concentrate completely on the Big Idea and disregard the details that are needed to support it, or I focus so intensely on the details that I lose sight of the big picture. I can see why this juxtaposition results in the physical manifestation of a messy flaw in my order. I guess ordered chaos is really the best way to describe how I work. I don't have schedules, but I do have general ideas. I don't follow things to the letter - in fact, I kind of hate doing that. But I stick close to my assignment/topic/whatever, then go off on a random tangent and make something my own - but I DID branch off from the assignment. It would be helpful, in the setting with an ISFJ instructor, if I was given the main idea of our assignments and discussions, and the importance of what we were doing and why were explained to me, then the breakdown of the specific rules that HAVE to be followed were listed in an organized manner, in the most concise way. I tend to get overwhelmed when I read through our website. It would be much easier if we were to be given the bare bones of the requirments, then given the freedom to go wild with it. This is the iNtuitive part of me speaking. I also agree with Bat - I would definitely like more feedback on my style of writing and the message I am trying to get across, more than the copyediting. I like the copyediting, but I want more of the Big Idea.

My Inspiration Wall above my desk.

Take the extra time to enhance your work with pictures and videos because it will make the experience far more meaningful.

In terms of how our assignments work, I definitely would appreciate more of the visual. I appreciate and enjoy the class discussions when we are asked to draw something. Although I like writing ( I AM a Plan II student, and already this blog post may be getting a lot longer than it needs to be), I need a mix of the visual and written word. All of my artwork incorporates my writing, and in my writing, I try to vividly depict the pictures and scenes I am visualizing in my mind's eye. I like that we are encouraged to incorporate visual media into our work. In fact, I really just appreciate the idea of experiential learning, because then we are not simply reading about different experiences, but experiencing situations with all 5 senses. I learn best with visual stimuli for inspiration, or writing that evokes an emotion or vision. The above photo is the Inspiration Wall I have above my desk. I have another blog which I use solely to keep track of the visual media (photos, artwork and so on) that I find inspiring. I use this whenever I'm stuck on any creative thing - it's my treasure trove of inspiration. It would be helpful to do more activities that incorporate art and video with writing, such as when we went to the Blanton for the Scavenger Hunt (probably one of my favorite assignments).

In terms of the social aspect of this class and my learning style, INFJ's " are also very expressive, but only to certain people they trust. Those who they trust are carefully chosen, and will ultimately know almost everything about the INFJ."  I can get along with almost everybody and am a fairly social person, but I definitely do better in smaller groups. I find it extremely difficult to trust someone enough to talk about myself with them, so this class has been an enormous challenge. We were basically forced out of our shells and armor, and that's something I really appreciate. It doesn't mean that I will be able to get close to more people, or that it is easier to do so. It just means that now I know I can. Even though it was hard to be told to talk about yourself on the internet, to your peers, to your professor, it was also a really great experience and lesson Professor Bump has provided. I also think the combination of free class discussion where everyone is invited to jump in, with structured discussion such as Feedback Time, is a good idea. I know I hesitate much more during the free class discussion, as my introverted side finds it more valuable to mull over the thoughts in my head by myself. However, I don't think that's right, because there is so much value in learning from others, and its going to be something I'll have to work on to learn to trust people around me enough to have more meaningful discussions.  

The Bluest Eye 1

"Nobody loves the head of a dandelion. Maybe because they are so many, strong, and soon." (47)

If I open my drawer of contacts, I will find several cases of unused pairs. All are grey colored-contacts. All would cover up my natural eye color, and make them something else. Make me someone else.

I never wear clear contacts. I don't own any. I have glasses, but I never wear those either. Well, I do now, because after getting my eyes examined last week, my doctor has expressly forbidden that I go without the aid of ocular devices like I have been. But its only recently that I've become comfortable with that. When I was younger, I used to think that brown eyes were utterly boring. Lots of people have them, they don't stand out in any way, they were SO typical of a south asian. That was the main thing. They were typical. They made me look like every other girl from India, Pakistan, or Bangladesh. (Just for the record, I think I've established already that I don't really think anyone is typical).  And I wanted to be anything but typical. I wanted eyes that conveyed personality. That made me stand out. That made me different.

Grey contacts? Check. Cooler personality? ...

When I was in seventh grade, my mother finally allowed me to get contacts. But only color ones, and only for special occasions, she specified. Contacts were expensive! And if I was to get them, I might as well get the cool ones. THat was her reasoning. At the time, I was ecstatic. If I couldn't be born with beautiful eyes like my cousins: 

then I could at least have them temporarily and see what it felt like to stand out. I guess I did stand out with those eyes. First of all, I confused people, getting reactions like: "You look different... are your eyes...? Wait... what?" Or, "Your eyes are beautiful!" To which my flustered response would be an immediate declaration of the truth to assuage my guilt for assuming a face that wasn't really mine "Thanks! But they're not real."

My mum would ask me in confusion why I'd say that. "Your eyes ARE real. THe color may not be, but your eyes are." I heard, but didn't really listen. Instead, I'd wonder why she wouldn't let me buy more contacts so I could wear them all the time, and then nobody would be confused. I could be The Grey-Eyed Girl. There was a whole range of traits that would be connected to that. The Free Spirit maybe? The Artist? The Oddball? However, once college began, I stopped wearing contacts altogether. First of all, because there weren't very many "special occasions" to wear them to, and secondly, I never know what time of night I'll be able to remove them, and lastly, because I'd made a pact with myself to make sure that whatever changes I'd go through in college, I'd make certain to stay absolutely, completely, undeniably true to myself. And I began to realize, whenever I DID put on the colored contacts, that that small change went against that decision. I'm not trying to say that color contacts are bad, or that they made me a fake or feel like a fake. However, that small difference made me remember that I thought my own eyes weren't good enough, that my face wasn't good enough, that my personality wasn't good enough. And honestly? They are. My eyes help me see the world, and helps those I interact with to see me. The real me. My face isn't perfect, but nobody's is. The imperfections in each and every face are endearing. They are identifiers. They make me Me, and you You. My personality? Well, all of the things I thought the grey eyes conveyed, I embody already, so the color of my eyes weren't at all what gave me strength.

That was all me.

Its strength that is beautiful. It's strength that is terrifying and enviable in its utter certainty and power. Dandelion heads represent strong people, and in this book strong women. Men definitely have ideals and standards to stand up to, but I only really know the female perspective. And the pressure is intense. There is always a standard (or a bajillion) that is impossible to meet. But why do we have to? Why does it matter? Why should a society create impossible standards and why should the populace waste a ton of energy on self-beautifying, or feeling negative thoughts about themselves, when that energy could be spent positively, making a difference, saving the world a little bit at a time? Putting out good energy rather than bad?

I think the above quote is wrong. It is not that nobody loves dandelion heads because of their strength. It is that people are too scared to dominate it, to try to eat it up. Because strength is intense. Strength will not back down. Strength is ironclad. And it is beautiful.

"They seemed to have taken all of their smoothly cultivated ignorance, their exquisitely learned self-hatred, their elaborately designed hopelessness and sucked it all up in a fiery cone of scorn that had burned for ages in the hollows of their minds - cooled - and spilled over lips of outrage, consuming whatever was in its path." (65)

When the boys mock and bully Pecola, they, like most bullies, are basically turning their inner frustrations onto an outside figure. All of the bitterness inside them, the acidic hatred burning their insides had turned inward, and rather than containing that toxic mix, they let it explode out onto Pecola.

That is what beauty standards are doing to people in this country. Actually, not even beauty standards, but all sorts of standards. There is a standard of what the American Dream is - if you are poor, or can't achieve it, you're "not good enough." There is a standard for what your weight should be. If you don't meet it, you're "not good enough." If you don't measure up in style, or physical appearance, in thought process, in personality, in possessions, you're "not good enough." And that's not exactly something unique to to this country. Its a pervasive thought process that has taken over the collective psyche of the world. I am not arguing against encouraging people to be healthy and fit, or to take care of themselves. I'm arguing against the idea of a standard. I'm arguing against the idea that there is a common idea of beauty (no matter what it is. They can be different in different countries, but they exist), because diversity is beauty.

This idea of an unattainable standard has begun to consume people. We have disgusting TV shows like Bridalplasty, in which soon-to-be-brides compete in challenges and and the winners are rewarded with plastic surgery. We have people spending thousands of dollars on diet fads that won't work, makeup that won't be a magic bullet, and many other things that simply aren't the magic spells that people wish they were. People are sucked into a toxic vortex of obsession over the miniscule - their physical appearance.

This is time and money that won't be returned. Time and money that could be spent on improving the world.

MAUS

Reading this book, the first thing to come to mind is the movie La Vita e Bella. For those of you who haven't watched this movie, it is a remarkable, beautifully made Italian film about the Holocaust. The first part of this movie is a romance, but the fairytale ends once the Holocaust comes in and turns the protagonists' lives upside down. What sets this movie apart is the way it handles the Holocaust. The father turns the horror into a sort of "game" for his young son in order to ensure his survival. He simplifies things down to a point system and renames the cruelties so that the child can get through the traumatic experience intact. The trailer I've posted below is a good summary of the movie.

Besides the obvious connection this has to Maus, namely that they are both about the Holocaust, what's fascinating is considering this from the point of view of the child of a survivor. Well, in La Vita e Bella, the child IS a survivor, but his father kept him very sheltered and protected so he would not see the terrors of Auschwitz. So his experience was very different from the norm. The point is, considering this from the point of view of one who was very close to the Holocaust (through a father), but didn't exactly share the same experience. How do they comprehend the situation? How do they make sense of their parents' experiences or psychological reactions? How do they deal with growing up in a family so scarred and so strong? Artie Spiegelman wonders, "I mean, I can't even make any sense out of my relationship with my father... How am I supposed to make any sense out of Auschwitz?... of the Holocaust?...I know this is insane, but I somehow wish I had been in Auschwitz WITH my parents so i could really know what they lived through! ... I guess it's SOME kind of guilt about having had an easier life than they did." (14-16)

trcs.wikispaces.com

Art thinking/lamenting aloud

What both of these works did though, was alter something about the Holocaust to make it almost "easier" to swallow the truth of history. Perhaps easier is the wrong word ... maybe something that distanced the reader/viewer from the Holocaust, but even that isn't right, because it still made an impact in its own way. For example, by altering the Holocaust into a game, Gio (the protagonist of the movie) protected his son's sanity as well as his physical self. He ensured that he would not have to answer his son's probing questions about human cruelty, questions to which he had no answer, and protected him from viewing or experiencing the worst of the Holocaust. The reader, however, does not experience it the same way. The viewer instead is struck by the poignancy of reducing the worst of human behavior into a childish game - because the concept the Holocaust is based on in the first place, that anyone "different" is immediately bad, is a remarkably immature one. It also connects a dark blot of human history to the most innocent of things - a child, and is all the more heartwrenching. In Maus, Art Spiegelman turns all the humans into animals. In a sense, this distances the reader because it can be harder to connect to a nonhuman,, but at the same time, there is no doubt that the animals are a metaphor for differences between humans, and not about animal cruelty. I think it is very true that Speigelman's metaphor self -destructs, mostly because it is oversimplified, and creates an analogy between ethnicities/religions and species. But really, humans are a single species, with nationalities being perhaps like different subspecies (if a connection must be made). I think the problem arises because humans are too complex. What is a French Jew as opposed to a Polish Jew? Is religion more prominent an identifier, or ethnicity/culture? And if all Nazis are cats, what about Nazis who are not German? Are pigs just for Polish Nazis/guards, or for all Poles? Then what about Polish Jews again? Its back to the beginning again. Humans are just way too layered and complex to be grouped into a set generalization.

Aha! So I just had a mini-epiphany while typing. Spiegelman's self-destructing metaphor saves itself. The point is that humans CAN'T be generalized. You can't take a group of people and lump them together, because everyone is different. Everyone is diverse. How can generalizations even function? If you just take our class - each and every one of us has something unique that makes us stand out, and different from each other. And then if we take the group and make it bigger, that truth will still hold true.

http://www.synagogues.com/article/view/the-yellow-star

How would you have treated them?

As to the question, "what would I do if I was in Nazi Germany during the Holocaust?" I really don't see this as a fair question. No one wants to say that they would turn the other cheek, but its also incredibly difficult to say that you'd be a hero. Why? Because, without having faced that intense level of stress and pressure, you don't know for sure. I would definitely be OPPOSED to everything that was happening, and I'd hate the injustice, and I would probably feel like screaming out against it. I'd want to do something, to make a difference, to stop the atrocities, to keep my neighbors safe, to keep my friends and family safe, BUT. That's the problem, isn't it? What if standing up against the Gestapo put your own family in danger? Which it did. What if standing up against injustice led to your arrest and mysterious disappearance, leaving your family without a protector? It's like when Art wonders, "I don't get it... Why didn't the Jews at least TRY to resist?" and his father responds, "It wasn't so easy like you think. Everyone was so starving and frightened, and tired they couldn't BELIEVE even what's in front of their eyes." (73) This concept of "It wasn't so easy like you think," holds true for the question raised at the beginning of this paragraph. What we THINK we are capable of may not be what we're really capable of. At the same time, we are also probably a whole lot more resourceful and capable than we give ourselves credit for. Maybe we'd be able to smuggle Jews to safety, or aid them on an escape mission, or smuggle someone a meal. Even something that small could mean a lot.

Who knows what we're capable of?

Origins of a Stereotype: Black Cats

            If you live in America or many other Western countries, chances are you harbor some sort of stigma towards black cats. Perhaps not on an individual basis, but you may remember that black cats are a sign of bad luck. Perhaps your mind jumps to Halloween and witches and devilry or to Sabrina the Teenage Witch.

This view of black cats in American society is so prevalent that it is practically unnoticeable. It is so ingrained into our collective psyche that there is hardly any way to recognize the harm this attitude has on innocent animals. From pop culture to popular holidays, the stereotype is referenced and perpetrated through literature, film, anarchic symbolism, and other elements of the entertainment industry. Though most people do not know where the stereotype has originated, they are familiar with idioms that seem as old as time and seem to just fit in with our collective cultural vocabulary: Black cats are an omen of ill tidings, the sign of the devil, or a witch’s familiar. This begs the question – why? Why do these stereotypes exist? What exactly is wrong with the color black that a black cat is treated or viewed differently than a white or tabby? Is there truly a significant difference in how people adopt cats of various colors? Is this stereotype against black cats more of a generalization than how people view said cats on an individual basis? And how exactly do other nations perceive black cats?      

This discrimination against black cats in general is not new, though it does differ between cultures. In most Western European nations as in America, black cats are seen in a negative light. In the United Kingdom however, black cats are actually considered harbingers of good fortune. The same is true for Japan as well as Australia, where it is a lucky incident when a black cat crosses your path. In Scotland, a black cat found on the porch is considered lucky, whereas Americans consider dreaming of or seeing a white cat at night to be a sign of good luck. Amongst domestic creatures and pets, cats in general are victims of many stereotypes, some negative and some not. For example, the folks in the Netherlands refused to allow cats to enter any room where a private conversation was occurring, because they believed that cats were gossip-mongers spreading their information all throughout the town. On the other hand, the Italians believed that hearing a cat sneeze brought good fortune upon all those lucky enough to hear it, and the Egyptians essentially worshiped felines. Cats were considered so sacred that any human that killed one would receive the same as consequence. Cats were commonly seen in Egyptian hieroglyphs, and were mummified and buried alongside pharaohs or in cat graveyards. They were viewed much as how cows are viewed in India in the Hindu religion.

 

Even in England however, where black cats are considered lucky, this was not always the case. In ancient times, cats were considered a sign of fertility and respected as divinities. However, with the spread of Christianity, the pagan gods were all converted into demons or blasphemous creatures of some sort. This initiated the turn in tide towards how cats were seen in general. One Greek myth taught that a woman named Galenthias was turned into a cat and became the “Dark Mother,” or goddess of witchcraft. This indicates a clear fear and mistrust of cats and associates them directly to evil and witches. The Middle Ages was not a time in which magic was seen in a positive light.  Interestingly, black cats were the very first color that mutated from the original striped tabby cat found in Egypt. However, the origins of human fear of this creature can be traced to the Middle Ages.  This was a period of darkness and ignorance, commonly considered a step backward in human culture and intellect. For this reason, this era was full of legend and fear. Single women who chose to shelter cats for companionship were considered witches and shunned by villagers. Sometime in the late 1500’s was a significant peak in persecution towards witches, and cats were directly involved in the torture and cruelty these women were subjected to.

 Fear of darkness and the unknown, and fear of the devil led to the stigmatization of the color black. This combined with fear of cats led to an intense rejection of black cats. More than any other feline, black cats in particular were considered witches’ familiars. Familiars are basically creatures that aid witches in their questionable and frightening shenanigans. There was also a pervading belief that witches could turn into black cats, when shifting from their human forms, so therefore at this time, there was no qualm against killing cats. It was easier than killing a “being” that looked human despite its supposedly demonic origins. Witch-burning was a common practice, and their black cats were as often as not burned alongside the owners.

Because Halloween stems from pagan practices, these fears have carried over. Though they are no longer explicit fears, and are instead heavily commercialized, the symbol of the black cat as a representative of evil pervades our culture. In the play The Master and Margarita, the character of Behemoth is an enormous black cat that is part of the Devil’s entourage. We saw this play firsthand, performed by the Broccoli Project with our very own Joe/Bengal as the lead. Although modern day practices are exponentially tamer than the Medieval rituals of All Hallow’s Eve, there is still a significant amount of danger for black cats connected to this holiday, and pet shelters have taken notice and preventative action.

Human cruelty still exists. There is a significant perception of danger to black cats during the Halloween holidays, for pranks are still pulled by people who don’t consider the creatures they taunt and tease and pain to be living breathing beings. Many adoption agencies have reported that after the month of October, a substantial number of black cats are returned with the claim that “it just didn’t work out.” This is thought to be code for, “I am done using this living being for a prop for my Halloween decorations.” Clearly this is unhealthy for any creature – human beings themselves deal very poorly with being shuffled between foster homes. With this combination of ignorance, inconsiderateness, and downright cruelty, many animal shelters and adoption agencies shut down the adoption process for black felines for the entire month of October.

Though the intentions here are pure, it is the unforeseen consequence that tends to be the problem. By stopping adoption of black cats for an entire month, this creates a huge pileup of cats that need to be adopted and simply slows down the process of finding these creatures permanent homes. Many agencies continue to allow adoptions of black cats, as adoption is done on an individual case basis, but are much more thorough and cautious during this time.

However, there is no clear evidence or scientific information and data proving that satanic rituals and animal abuse occur in extraordinary doses. However, the fact that it occurs at all is disturbing in and of itself. It is clear that the stigma against black cats persists to this day.

The black cat is even a symbol of anarchy. The Industrial Workers of the World union chose this symbol precisely for the fear it instills. Robert Chaplin, one the union’s leaders, described that using the black cat was indicative of sabotage, and their purpose was to use the black cat to sabotage the superstitious boss.

In pop culture and the entertainment industry, black cats are definitely the cat of choice in scary movies and anything to do with witches. I’ve included a clip of the classic Halloween comedic movie, Hocus Pocus, in which the three witches turn the main character into a black cat. Although he is clearly the hero of the story, simply because this is a Halloween movie and the witches are casting a spell, he is turned into a black cat. Any other color would not mesh well with our cultural expectations.

I’ve also found a song by the Mayday Parade titled Black Cat. The lyrics are included in the video and indicate the idea of the black cat as a sort of anarchist. Maybe a relationship anarchist, but a destructive figure nonetheless. The Janet Jackson song Black Cat also references a similar relationship figure.



Although in general this stigma may exist, it is important to note that on an individual basis, many people adore black cats. Our very own Charlotte/Elephant has a beautiful black kitty named Harriet! As awareness and acceptance increase, the plight of supposedly unlucky black cats can shift towards the positive.