America's Zoos: Entertainment to Conservation

As the animal rights movement has developed and grown substantially in recent years, there has been an increased focused on the welfare of captive animals. A popular institution that has received much attention for keeping animals captive is the zoo. Because of this focus, zoos have responded by publicizing their positive benefits for existence in order to justify keeping these animals on display. Since the term “zoo” can have a wide variety of meaning and characteristics, it is important to define what constitutes a zoo in this essay. Zoos are defined as a facility in which animals are confined within enclosures, displayed to the public, and

Zoos are internment camps for animals, and it should be shut down because of all the mistreatment and bad effects it has caused on animals. These bad effects and mistreatment can be summarized to three major points, which are:

Zoos present a certain blend of nature and culture. They have always provided a way to bring natural wildlife and urban Americans together as a means of entertainment. Yet, throughout the years the role of zoos have changed. Though once used for amusement, zoos are now being used for education on preservation and the welfare of endangered species. One may wonder where and how the idea of zoos started and just how they, and the environment around them, have changed throughout history.

Whether it is by using the written word, a speech, or any other medium, in order to convey a message to an audience, one must have an effective way of communicating one's ideas. The Greek philosopher Aristotle believed that effective speakers use three kinds of appeals to make their arguments convincing; ethos, the credibility of the speaker, logos, the speaker's actual message, and pathos, or the emotional appeal the speaker arises in its audience. These rhetorical appeals are present in many aspects of everyday life, including in websites. Websites such as the El Paso Zoological Society use these three appeals to effectively communicate with those who visit their page.

What was at one time used to show off wealth and power is now seen as a symbol of sadness and disgust, despite the many minds it blesses with wonder (Adwait- Kulkarni). Today there are huge controversies over Zoos and whether they are inhumane or not. There are also controversies about the United States of America and other countries. Many comparisons can be drawn between a Zoo and American culture. We go out to look at animals that are trapped in a place they have no control of, but could we really be looking at ourselves?

Founded in 1875 in Buffalo, New York, the Buffalo Zoo quickly became a popular tourist attraction. However, as time went on, the outdated buildings and unenthusiastic employees led to a decline in zoo visitors. The zoo began to face several challenges, and the most significant was the fear of losing its accreditation. The president at the time devised a plan to move the Buffalo Zoo to Delaware Park, but that was quickly blocked by employees of the zoo and members of the community. With no support and no where to turn, the president decided to resign. This left the zoo with no plan, and no one to guide them. After extensive searching, the zoo made the decision to hire 43-year-old Donna Fernandes. Donna had an extensive background in education and experience in management and caring for animals. Although Donna seemed like the perfect candidate for the position, she was warned that the employees and community would be reluctant to accept her due to previous negative experiences with poor management and failed attempts to save the zoo. This did not deter Donna, and she worked hard to change those negative experiences into positive ones.

A well-developed institute in history, the zoo was a work in progress that advanced from animal collections to caged menageries to elaborate exhibits of exotic wildlife. The aforementioned animal collections differ in the fact that the American zoos of the Progressive Era mainly appealed the middle class family. American Zoos can be traced back to colonial days, where animals were displayed via chains and cages in front of local businesses or placed in traveling menagerie collections. Such animal collections fascinated inquisitorial patrons. Early collections reflected amusement and very little actual zoological knowledge.

USA Mall, so that it was more connected with the community. More people would attend if people from the city could take a bus, or even walk, to the stadium especially with the Chiefs low ticket prices. Although, the venue is placed right by the railroads that represent what the Chiefs are named after.

Instead of only showing the progress of America, the fair also displayed “barbaric” and “uncivilized” regions. There was a human zoo which took Native Americans and dehumanized them to a make them look primitive and barbaric. The human zoo over exaggerated cultures to make America seem more civilized and technologically advanced. America was very fastidious to try and make the people they put on display justify their own colonial power. In some cases this meant creating savages. In other cases, they tried to use these displays of human beings to illustrate how the colonial presence was making other people more

Some people may say that the zoo is the best place ever!,but i disagree with that. According to "zoo's connect us to the natural world's" by Michael Hutchins". In 2002 more than 140 million people go to the zoo everyday , but the don't know is that a zoo in Denmark had a giraffe and they killed it for no reason ,but the story behind it was " The giraffe went after the bread and right then the man shot it". The bad part about the whole thing was that when it had died they put it out where the zoo was and all though some people think that its good for there kids in my opinion its very bad ,because that's something that kids may love and its hard to sit there and watch them cut it open and show you . They were offered $ 7,000 dollars that away

The effects of the New Deal reached every part of America even the large cities. Found in the heart of the most populated and active cities lies the Central Park Zoo. The zoo wasn't always as glamours as it is today. With the help of New Deal programs the city was able to restore the zoo and bring life into the city. This was the spark to brighter and more lively city.

Historically, there is not much known about the origins of zoos. Zoos can be traced from 3500 BC in Egypt and from there made their way through the rest of the civilized world. Back then zoos were designed not only for human entertainment but to show the wealth and beauty of a city and their ruler. The city who had the most zoos showed that ruler had wealth, and showed that the city had prosperity, because of zoos cities would thrive and what kept them thriving even through hardships. Additionally, in China zoos were considered to be the most peaceful place a person can visit, and even to some a place of worship. (“Zoos Bad for Animals”). Unfortunately, times are not the same since they were in 3500 BC. “More modern zoos in Europe and the United

Zoos are a dynamic educational source that enhances our community. Zoos raise awareness about jeopardized species and the significance of preservation. Zoos may help us to comprehend animals. They offer a good tool for our societies by lodging and dealing with creatures that may have been in peril at one point in their life. “100,000 kids come to London Zoo every year to learn about creatures.”[3] Usually when people come to zoos and they are taught about the conservation of some of the endangered species, a lot of these people get motivated and inspired to do something about it either by donating money or volunteering to help and so on.

Since approximately 1250 B.C., ancient Egyptians had created and practiced the capture and display of animals in what are now known as zoos (Fravel). Records describe such exotic animals as birds, lions, giraffes, and tigers in captivity (Fravel). Since then, zoos have continued to entertain millions with the exciting chance to view exotic animals up close and personal. Even in ancient Greece, exotic animals were on display in fighting arenas, and in enclosed viewing areas. Originally in America, zoos were just created so that royalty and the wealthy could flaunt their exotic animals to the public (Leolupus). Today, with species threatened and habitats disappearing worldwide, zoos are serving a new purpose other than the mere exhibition of

We take a sum of about ten to twenty dollars and pay our admission to the zoo to watch animals for our own entertainment. Many zoos encompass the United States. We see and analyze monkeys, birds, lions, tigers, and bears. Children seem to love to see the animals in ‘habitats’. We wholeheartedly take kids to these places in order for them to see and witness creatures they would not, unless taken to the zoo. One animal that really stands out are whales. Whales are huge beautiful creatures that are intelligent and bring astonishment to the eyes. Although whales are extravagant they should not be held in captivity in places like SeaWorld because they are dangerous to keepers, their living space is too small for their instinct, and they do not work particularly well with other whales swimming around.