What’s in a Name? The Soul of an Animal

Share this:

In a pivotal scene in David Lynch’s film, The Elephant Man, the main character turns on those who are cruelly taunting him and declares “I am not an elephant! I am not an animal! I am a human being! I…am…a man.” The crowd disperses.

Ever since the first time I saw this movie, I’ve had the same reaction. As a sympathetic viewer, I’m relieved that Merrick decries his abusers, but in making a claim for the dignity he deserves as a man, the implication is that the abuse would be acceptable if he were “an animal.”

And yet, human and non-human, we are all animals. We are all made of the same stuff, evident even in the word “animal,” whose root word means “soul.”

Supporters make this podcast possible, and they receive written transcripts of each and every episode.


HOW TO LISTEN / SUBSCRIBE TO THE ANIMALOGY PODCAST:

  1. Click PLAY on the player above.
  2. Listen and subscribe through Apple PodcastsGoogle PodcastsStitcherSpotify, PodBean, or wherever you listen to podcasts. 
  3. Subscribe to the RSS feed

The Animalogy Podcast is listener-supported. Please join other supporters by going to Patreon.com/ColleenPatrickGoudreau and becoming a patron.



Related Posts

Coccyx: Please Don’t Sit on the Cuckoo
Coccyx is a small triangle-shaped bone at the base of the spinal column in humans and other apes, such as gibbons, orangutans, gorillas, and chimp…
Animal Characteristics in Word Histories: Who They Are in What We Say
Whereas the word veal in English simply means “flesh of a calf” and pork in English means “flesh of a pig used as food,” hidden in many of the Angl…
Falconry: Fed Up and Looking Haggard
The practice of hunting wild birds with trained birds — for fun is called falconry. Though it came into its own almost 1,000 years ago in England …

About Colleen

Hello, and welcome. I’m Colleen, aka The Joyful Vegan, and I’m here to give you the tools and resources you need to eat, cook, travel, and live compassionately and healthfully. 

Donating = Loving

For over twenty years, my work and podcast have remained free (and ad-free) and vibrant thanks to support from listeners, followers, and readers. I have no staff, no interns, and no assistant. What you see (and hear and watch) is a one-woman labor of love that is also my life and my livelihood. If this labor has impacted your life in the past year (or the past decades), please consider aiding its sustenance by becoming a patron or by making a one-time donation. Your support makes all the difference.

Favorite Things

Joyful Vegan Messageware

Wear your compassion on your sleeve (or chest or head!) by choosing any number of my message products.

GET YOUR FREE JOYFUL VEGAN GUIDE

Includes delicious plant-based recipes and a meal plan!




© 2022 ColleenPatrickGoudreau.com. All Rights Reserved.