Vicious: Wolves and Men in America (The Lamar Series in Western History) Rating :
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6 of 8 people found the following review helpful.
Who Are the Vicious Ones?
By W. Watson
It doesn't take one long to realize the title, I believe, doesn't refer to the viciousness of the wolves, but to humans. In a number of instances he reveals the incredible senseless cruelty inflicted upon captured wolves, many times for sheer pleasure and other times to somehow to 'even the score'.
Particularly interesting are the passages on the Mormons and their eradication of the wolves of Utah, which I think backfired in an interesting way, the very tall tales associated with wolves, the turning point toward environmentalism brought about Leopold, and the governmental eradication program in effect until 1950. It's quite interesting to see how the government "propaganda program" drove the eradication effort.
The author makes an interesting remark that there is no record in North America that wolves have ever killed a human. It's probably true, but worth looking into. I've heard this remark before. Perhaps a little Google work, or maybe something is in his bibliography.
There was an interesting section on communications between the Algonquin indians and Europeans settlers that hinged on interaction with wolves, dogs, and other animals. I recently had seen the movie "New World", 2005/6 release, which depicted this communication in a similar way. Perhaps the author had some influence.
2 of 3 people found the following review helpful.
great insight on inter-species communication
By Brian Griffith
Coleman's account of the great American wolf war is clearly written, almost like the script for a documentary film. But behind the easy-to-digest presentation lies a mass of research on the cultures of wolves and of particular human communities. Coleman gives as much attention to the meanings of wolf behavior as he does to the of meanings Puritan, Narragansett, or Mormon settler behavior. Behind the events of history, he exposes a series of fundamental failures in communication. Most basically, he shows how wolf howls signal other wolves to keep their distance, but the settlers generally assumed that howls were signals for attack on humans. The contrasts between European and Native, or between rural and urban responses to these creatures reveal a range of possibilities for war or co-existence. The story also traces 400 years in the evolution of folklore, and illustrates the degree to which folklore shapes our relations with all the creatures around us.
0 of 2 people found the following review helpful.great service
By badger
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Product Description
Over a continent and three centuries, American livestock owners destroyed wolves to protect the beasts that supplied them with food, clothing, mobility, and wealth. The brutality of the campaign soon exceeded wolves’ misdeeds. Wolves menaced property, not people, but storytellers often depicted the animals as ravenous threats to human safety. Subjects of nightmares and legends, wolves fell prey not only to Americans’ thirst for land and resources but also to their deeper anxieties about the untamed frontier.
Now Americans study and protect wolves and jail hunters who shoot them without authorization. Wolves have become the poster beasts of the great American wilderness, and the federal government has paid millions of dollars to reintroduce them to scenic habitats like Yellowstone National Park.
Why did Americans hate wolves for centuries? And, given the ferocity of this loathing, why are Americans now so protective of the animals? In this ambitious history of wolves in America—and of the humans who have hated and then loved them—Jon Coleman investigates a fraught relationship between two species and uncovers striking similarities, deadly differences, and, all too frequently, tragic misunderstanding.
Product Details
- Amazon Sales Rank: #385644 in Books
- Published on: 2004-08-11
- Original language:English
- Number of items: 1
- Dimensions: 9.49" h x6.34" w x1.00" l,1.10 pounds
- Binding: Hardcover
- 288 pages
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