Domestication For Human Use and Social Perception

Domestication For Human Use

            The earliest evidence of tamed elephants can be dated back to 2000 BC in the Indus Valley.  It has been speculated that India was the first place to begin to use elephants for domestic purposes.  One of the early uses of elephants by India, China, and Persia was for warfare.Because male elephants are difficult to tame during musk, they were used as in warfare to intimidate horses and their riders by charging at them. Since then, elephants have been domesticated by humans to be used for industry, and entertainment in circuses and zoos.

           Elephants have played an significant role in industry. They were used to complete task that required heavy lifting. They were seen working in the logging field and were trained to move large tree logs. Elephants also served as capital punishment in ancient history. The elephant was also used as transportation while humans hunted in the wild.

            Today many elephants are now seen as entertainment for humans. They are often spotted performing in local circuses and held captive in zoos for human pleasure. In circuses the animal is trained to perform tricks to entertain the audience. Elephants have become popular in circuses because they seem to captivate the minds of the audience due to their large size and the task they are trained to do. I know that growing up myself I always saw elephants in the captivity of humans and being used for human entertainment.  In society nowadays we recognize these creatures as performance animals. This is why there are so many organization like PAWS trying to prevent the exploitation of exotic and performing animals.


Ref.

1.      “Domestication and use of elephants." Elephants Forever - A Study Of Elephants. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Sept. 2013. http://www.elephantsforever.co.za/elephant-domestication.html.

2. "Kruger National Park - SANParks - Official Website." South Africa National Parks - SANParks - Official Website - Accommodation, Activities, Prices, Reservations. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Sept. 2013.
3."Performing Animal Welfare Society -- PAWS." Performing Animal Welfare Society -- PAWS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2013. <http://www.pawsweb.org/>.