Reports produced for BA History and Anthropology by Avery Delany
The release of the American documentary film Blackfish (2013) caused a splash within the human-an... more The release of the American documentary film Blackfish (2013) caused a splash within the human-animal world. Centering on the famous Sea World orca Tilikum, who had been involved in the deaths of three Sea World trainers, Blackfish exposed potential consequences of keeping orcas in captivity for the benefit of human entertainment, although Sea World continues to argue that their marine park specialised in conservation of and education about marine animals. Whilst keeping animals in captivity has long been a controversial issue, Blackfish sparked something in the public imagination about the display of live animals and amplified the raging debate around the purposes of these displays.
Combining a uniquely anthropological and historical approach to the topic, this essay explores the development of zoos from their first appearance to the present day. Are zoos bastions of conservation which contain collections of the last precious "wild" animals in the world or are they entertainment stages in which animals are paraded on for the purpose of commercial profit? What can we learn from debates around the display of animals in zoos, and do they say more about us than the animals which we observe?
This paper was submitted as part of the BA in History and Anthropology at Goldsmiths University for the third year module on human-animal relations
The French Revolution is one of the most memorable events in world history. It's enduring legacy ... more The French Revolution is one of the most memorable events in world history. It's enduring legacy of liberty, egality and fraternity have had ground-breaking implications for democracy and human rights, resonating all over the world. Key figures and events such as the fall of the Bastille, King Louis XVI, the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen, and Napoleon are easily recognisable to even those who are not familiar with history. Yet, very little is routinely known about experiences which lie outside of mainstream narratives of the French Revolution. Despite women and queer people having played integral roles in the French Revolution, accounts of their contributions are difficult to uncover, as they have been erased from the patriarchal, heteronormative historical narrative of the French Revolution. This essay assesses how people who transgressed heteronormative boundaries were constructed as 'others' within the French Revolution and in its subsequent historiography by firstly, using feminist and queer theory to critique dominant historiographical narratives of the French Revolution and secondly, to explore alternative narratives of women and queer people during the French Revolution.
Papers by Avery Delany
Teaching Anthropology, 2021
In recent years, diversity has become a buzzword in anthropology and wider academia but what does... more In recent years, diversity has become a buzzword in anthropology and wider academia but what does it mean to really do “diversity work”? Who does diversity work? And what does diversity work have to do with reimagining anthropology? Drawing on the rich and nourishing work of women of colour across disciplines, this article offers a personal intervention on the topic of diversity and reimagining anthropology, calling not just for a passive reimagining of the discipline but a radical remaking of it. Diversity is exhausting work, work that marginalized people are frequently expected to do. Rather than repeating the answers and solutions already offered by feminists of colour, readers are provided a set of exercises which creatively capture personal moments of a student of anthropology and are asked to “work” with these moments: to think about them, sit with the discomfort, use them to pay attention to how diversity is at play within their departments and institutions, to do something w...
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Reports produced for BA History and Anthropology by Avery Delany
Combining a uniquely anthropological and historical approach to the topic, this essay explores the development of zoos from their first appearance to the present day. Are zoos bastions of conservation which contain collections of the last precious "wild" animals in the world or are they entertainment stages in which animals are paraded on for the purpose of commercial profit? What can we learn from debates around the display of animals in zoos, and do they say more about us than the animals which we observe?
This paper was submitted as part of the BA in History and Anthropology at Goldsmiths University for the third year module on human-animal relations
Papers by Avery Delany
Combining a uniquely anthropological and historical approach to the topic, this essay explores the development of zoos from their first appearance to the present day. Are zoos bastions of conservation which contain collections of the last precious "wild" animals in the world or are they entertainment stages in which animals are paraded on for the purpose of commercial profit? What can we learn from debates around the display of animals in zoos, and do they say more about us than the animals which we observe?
This paper was submitted as part of the BA in History and Anthropology at Goldsmiths University for the third year module on human-animal relations