Structures of captivity and animal agency : the London zoo, ca. 1865 to the present times

The chapter aims to restore a balance in zoological garden studies, where animals paradoxically are almost absent. In line with the recent development of historical works paying attention to animals in themselves, this chapter tries to decentre human concerns in order to shed light on animals’ lives by analysing a particular case study, that is, the history of captive primates (whose taxonomic proximity to humans has encouraged intimate relationships with both zoo keepers and visitors) at the London zoo during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. This study lets the materiality of primates’ lives emerge in all its complexity, by focusing on the multiple devices of captivity and their transformations along the century (architectural structures, spatial arrangements, hygienist measures). This approach also helps define the concept of animal agency and unveils the impossibility of separating the dominance over other beings—even when infused with affection and paternalism—from its effects on animals’ bodies and minds.

ISBN:9781003049883

Publication year:2022

Accessibility:Closed