What do you think?
Rate this book
The Wild Within: Histories of a Landmark British Zoo
Established in 1836, the Bristol Zoo is the world’s oldest surviving zoo outside of a capital city and has frequently been at the vanguard of zoo innovation. In The Wild Within, Andrew Flack uses the experiences of the Bristol Zoo to explore the complex and ever-changing relationship between human and beast, which in many cases has altered radically over time.
Flack recounts a history in which categories and identities combined, converged, and came into conflict, as the animals at Bristol proved to be extremely adaptive. He also reveals aspects of the human-animal bond, however, that have remained remarkably consistent not only throughout the zoo’s existence but for centuries, including the ways in which even the captive animals with the most distinct qualities and characteristics are misunderstood when viewed through an anthropocentric lens.
Flack strips back the layers of the human-animal relationship from those rooted in objectification and homogenization to those rooted in the recognition of consciousness and individual experience. The multifaceted beasts and protean people in The Wild Within challenge a host of assumptions--both within and outside the zoo--about what it means to be human or animal in the modern world.
Flack recounts a history in which categories and identities combined, converged, and came into conflict, as the animals at Bristol proved to be extremely adaptive. He also reveals aspects of the human-animal bond, however, that have remained remarkably consistent not only throughout the zoo’s existence but for centuries, including the ways in which even the captive animals with the most distinct qualities and characteristics are misunderstood when viewed through an anthropocentric lens.
Flack strips back the layers of the human-animal relationship from those rooted in objectification and homogenization to those rooted in the recognition of consciousness and individual experience. The multifaceted beasts and protean people in The Wild Within challenge a host of assumptions--both within and outside the zoo--about what it means to be human or animal in the modern world.
272 pages, Kindle Edition
Published February 22, 2018
4 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
July 31, 2018
The theme is clear. The structure is okay. Yet the book failed to engage my interest and I kept turning the pages waiting for something interesting to happen. Dull, dull, dull.
January 23, 2021
Visited Bristol Zoo multiple times as it is almost on my doorstep, and last time I walked away wondering about the history of it all. A little bit of research revealed this book to me so of course I went and bought it.
I found it incredibly and deeply fascinating. The author doesn’t just talk about the history of the zoo but the history of specific animals kept there and various incidents that have occurred at the zoo.
A little bit dry (you can tell it’s written by an academic by the language used) hence it took me so long to finish, but each section I read I was talking about the things I’d learned with everyone.
A fascinating read.
I found it incredibly and deeply fascinating. The author doesn’t just talk about the history of the zoo but the history of specific animals kept there and various incidents that have occurred at the zoo.
A little bit dry (you can tell it’s written by an academic by the language used) hence it took me so long to finish, but each section I read I was talking about the things I’d learned with everyone.
A fascinating read.
June 5, 2019
It's unfair of me to review this book - I'm biased because I know the author. But I will say it's a fascinating read - there is much more to zoos than you might think.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews