I magen på en häst

Abstract


 In a horse’s belly: Interspecies relations as a critique of civilization
 
 
 
 Jenny Ingridsdotter & Kim Silow Kallenberg
 
 
 
 Keywords: natureculture, animals, popular culture, masculinity
 
 
 In this article, we analyse how the relationship between humans and other species is portrayed in contemporary films and series that have the rise and fall of civilization as their theme: Into the Wild (2007), The Revenant (2015), Into the Forest (2015) and The Walking Dead (2010-). The purpose is to understand how relationships between humans, animals and non-humans are portrayed. The films/series have been chosen on the basis of their portrayal of social downfall or social dissatisfaction and on the grounds that they are also widely recognised and popular portrayals. The analysis focuses on two male characters (The Revenant, Into the Wild) and two female characters (Into the Forest and The Walking Dead) to investigate relationships between humans and other species (animals and zombies) when it comes to survival, and how these relationships are possibly conditioned by gender. Methodologically, we approach these popular cultural depictions as ethnographers, with human meaning-making as the primary point of departure. Theoretically, we use concepts developed in the field of human-animal studies.
 
 The analysis shows that there are differences between the representations of different species and that these representations are also conditioned by gender in the human characters. Where men are alone in their struggle against nature, women are part of social relationships where they, together with others (human and non-human), struggle to survive. The analysis further shows how animals and other species constantly condition and enable human existence. However, lacking human language, the animals – who are absolutely vital for the actions and survival of the human characters – are rendered unimportant.