Tilikum, An Orca At Sea World

562 Words2 Pages

Director-producer Gabriela Cowperthwaite of Blackfish tells the story of Tilikum, An Orca at Sea world used for performance shows that killed several people while in captivity. Along the way, Mr. Cowperthwaite shows emotional, shocking footage and interviews to explore the whales pulled out of nature and the inhuman treatments that orcas where getting in captivity. Some of the trainers that are alive and the ones that were lost was put under pressure brought this sea-park industry billions of dollars. Sea World was not telling the trainers that the whales were acting out because of the way that they were being treated. The Industry were fabricating the stories and telling there employee’s that it was a trainer error. When Sea World found out that Tilikum was available from Sea Land, they saw it as a big opportunity to get a male whale to reproduce the others they had in captivity. …show more content…

Even though Tilikum had must of the aggression all the other whales were bulling and hurt Tilikum. The ocras were lunging at the trainers when the trainer was in the water, some of the whale were literally putting a limb of their trainer and taking them under and hold them there. The storage area for the orcas was extremely small. Being in a pool only 3 times their size are driving them mad. So if sea world were to decide to make a pool a mile in length and width to put the whales in for storage would get a small real habitat. Being that the whales are dying at a much young age then they would in that wild, maybe Sea World should let the orcas go after a set amount of years and just make that one of the whales that they are reproducing to keep have a male orca so the older oracs can be set free to continue their

Show More
Related

  • Ethos In Blackfish

    699 Words  | 2 Pages

    Do you think the people of Sea Land and Sea World mentally injured the whales by taking them from their natural habitat? There were men sent on large sea boats and men in helicopters with some device that scans the water to locate the whales. Then once they track the whales they use the boats to separate the females and young ones from the males to try to abduct the youngest whales. People who cares about

    Read More

  • Sea World Rhetorical Analysis

    1408 Words  | 3 Pages

    The director includes footage of Tilikum and Dawn having a good time and performing together to show that Tilikum didn’t have any animosity towards her. Thomas Tobin explains the attack and mentions that Dawn was scalped and that her arm was missing. The director incorporates actual footage from the attack with eye witness testimonies to give the audience a sense of what actually happened. Although Tilikum was responsible for the death of trainer Dawn Brancheau, another whale at the Canadian park, Sealand of the Pacific was responsible for the tragic death of trainer and competitive swimmer, Keltie Byrne. Keltie Byrne was performing with the whales as she normally did when she suddenly slipped into the pool, as she was trying to pull herself out of the pool, the whale zoomed towards her and grabbed her by her boot. She proceeded to plead for help every chance she was brought back to the surface, but no one could help in time. These two incidents serve as examples that whales shouldn’t be taken out of their natural habitat because it’s unsafe for their mental health and it’s unsafe for the physical health of the

    Read More

  • Seaworld Persuasive Speech

    1468 Words  | 3 Pages

    Out of the 156 whales they have taken into captivity from the wild, 129 are dead. Including orcas bred within SeaWorld, at least 165 have died in their facilities (Schelling). Another falsehood SeaWorld claims is that collapsed dorsal fins are completely normal and common of all male orcas. It is actually quite rare to find in the wild, while every single one of their male whales has a collapsed dorsal fin (“8 Shocking Facts…”). SeaWorld also guarantees that they never separate a calf from its mother and even have posted a picture of a baby and its mother as proof. What they didn’t tell the public was that soon after that picture was posted they shipped the calf off to Spain alone to a different park. A past trainer even said that there had been at least 19 separations of mother and calf that he knew of at his location. All of these factors previously stated added up have a large influence on the whales mentally. Many whales are afflicted by psychosis and anxiety and in turn are given drugs such as Valium to keep them performing in shows. There have been various occasions, often swept under the rug by SeaWorld and away from the public eye, where the drugs didn’t work enough (Schelling). There

    Read More

  • Ethical Issues In Blackfish

    681 Words  | 2 Pages

    They succeed in catching Tilikum, a large male orca, along with two other females, and almost immediately, an important question is raised in the viewer’s mind: What gives humanity the right to incarcerate and separate these animals from their natural environment and their families? As the documentary progresses, Tilikum begins to exhibit frustration and aggressive behavior at the amusement park due to the fact that he is being kept in a small underwater storage container when not on display. Eventually, this treatment leads Tilikum to kill his trainer by dragging her to the bottom of the performance tank and forcing her to drown. At this point, another question is presented: Is Tilikum’s aggressive behavior a product of nature, and the nature of orcas as a species, or is it due to his coerced captivity? Over the course of the documentary, a number of killer whales are caught and brought to different aquatic parks where the viewer gets a behind-the-scenes look at what happens to these animals and their families upon imprisonment.

    Read More

  • SeaWorld: Behind the Scenes

    1561 Words  | 4 Pages

    After this, he captured a female in the Puget Sound and named her Shamu. Whales continued to be captured and brought to perform at SeaWorld and other aquariums (SeaWorld Tragedy). Howard Garrett, an OSHA researcher, describes the strategy, “They [hired trappers] had aircraft, they had spotters, they had speed boats, they had bombs they were throwing in the water. to herd the whales into coves. ”

    Read More

  • Persuasive Essay On Orcas

    673 Words  | 2 Pages

    And even a six year old wasn’t blind to that fact. The issue of keeping Orcas in captivity and under the care of man has been a controversial practice ever since the first dolphins and whales were taken into aquariums for the amusement of humans. In more recent times, the documentary Blackfish (which has been recently broadcast on popular TV stations such as CNN) that focuses on Tilikum, an orca held by SeaWorld, has brought to light the controversy over captive killer whales. Orcas are majestic, beautiful, and intelligent creatures that should not be kept in captivity for our entertainment because of the harm they cause. SeaWorld, a leader in the captivity and use of killer whales for entertainment, has counterattacked the points made by the documentary Blackfish, which brought many points to light.

    Read More

  • Killer Whales - The Orcas

    1109 Words  | 3 Pages

    Orcinus orca is the scientific name for the massive marine mammal. Orcas are not rare, but have declining numbers in some areas (Martin.) Orcas are found from the Artic Ocean to the Antartic Ocean. (Britannica) They belong to the Delphinidae, or dolphin family, which is the largest of their species. Female orcas grow to be at the most 15 feet, and weigh up to 4 tons, but the males can grow as large as 20-30 feet, and weight up to 8 tons. (Martin) The color of the orca is white in some spots, black on the majority of the body, and gray just behind the dorsal fin. It is white on the chin, belly and the eye. The white patch above the eye is usually mistaken for the eye, and may confuse their prey, but acts as a camouflage for the eye. The name “killer whale” makes people tend to believe that this is a viscious man-eating mammal, yet it is one of the most shrewd, docile and playful species of the marine mammals. The orca is sexually mature at 10-15 years of age, much like humans, which is 12-13 years of age. They tend to mate year round, and is able to have a calf every two years. It is interesting to know that lactation of the mother lasts 12 or more months (Wynne.) The life expectancy of orcas is 45-50 years of age.

    Read More

  • Animal Cruelty at Sea World

    788 Words  | 2 Pages

    It’s a very common practice in todays society for people to go to Sea World and see the famous shamu show while on vacation or out for a day of fun. Many people don’t fully understand how these animals feel while in captivity. Light has been shed on having these killer whales in captivity when a trainer was killed at Sea World recently. At one of the early parks called Sea Land one of the male killer whales Tilicum killed one of his trainers. After this incident Sea Land closed its doors. This meant that Tilicum was up for sale, Sea World jumped at the chance to buy him at a good price. Sea World was not fully aware that Tilicum was the actual cause of his trainers death. This was a death sentence for one of Sea Worlds female trainers. Sea World and companies like it are only in it to make money, these large animals should not be kept in captivity by any means.

    Read More

  • Argumentative Of Orca Whales

    1198 Words  | 3 Pages

    ...have been so dependent on humans and because whales who need to be rehabilitated cannot perform as well as those who are great condition, thus causing limited income for SeaWorld. There is a fine line between rehabilitating an animal and later releasing it and keeping a whale for profit and entertainment purposes only.

    Read More

  • Film Techniques In Blackfish

    1315 Words  | 3 Pages

    John Crowe, one of the hunters, is interviewed and tells the story of “the worst thing he’s ever done”. He appeals to the appalled emotions of the audience by admitting to the inhumane way they captured the baby whales. He uses an analogy when discussing the capturing, claiming it was like “kidnapping a kid from its mother”, which pulls at the heartstrings of any parent watching the film, establishing a sense of relatability. The film uses juxtaposition by examining how Crowe, a tough looking man, can be brought to tears by this horrific act. Blackfish then moves to discussing the reason behind Tilikum’s outburst by running a montage of news reports ambushing SeaWorld on the inhumane treatment of whales. The use of the rhetorical question “If you were in a bathtub for 25 years don’t you think you’d get a little irritated, aggravated, maybe a little psychotic?”, grabs the audience’s attention by creating a scenario they can understand. These events create an accusing tone that convinces the audience that SeaWorld is the antagonist of the film. Along with accusations from reporters, SeaWorld has fought many lawsuits against OSHA- the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, due to the way SeaWorld treats their animals. A court hearing is held regarding Tilikum’s behaviour due to pulled video footage of Tilikum lunging towards one of the trainers

    Read More

  • Seaworld Research Paper

    610 Words  | 2 Pages

    Seaworld is a giant marine life theme park. The greatest attraction to these many theme park would be those killer whales. In fact, these killer whales are the face of the park. As gigant as these mammals are, seaworld is keeping them in some pretty tight quarters. Mr. Jett and Mr.Ventre says “Wild killer whales can swim a hundred miles daily as they socialize, forage, communicate, and breed. In stark contrast, with little horizontal or vertical space in their enclosures, captive orcas swim only limited distances, with most spending many hours surface resting.” The animals don't have the freedom they need. Also when taking the whales out of their natural habit the whales tend to be depressed and not as heath in that situation. They need their freedom in the big ocean blue. Bring them into the small living units, breeding whales in captivity all for the entertainment of humans. At young ages the calves are taken away from their mothers on to a new seaworld park. Mothers of the calves have even been seen denying their offspring.

    Read More

  • Write An Argumentative Essay On Orca And Seaworld

    419 Words  | 1 Pages

    Over the years orca and Seaworld have become an intertwined named. One cannot think of Seaworld without a flash of a huge orca leaping out of the water with a trainer perched on their nose. The whale have become a huge profit making entity for Seaworld bringing in viewers from all over the world. However, while the trainers boast in their orca shows that the whales live enriched and healthy lives science proves them to be wrong on all

    Read More

  • A Rhetorical Analysis Of Blackfish By Gabriela Cowperthwaite

    969 Words  | 2 Pages

    Blackfish is a 2013 documentary, directed by Gabriela Cowperthwaite, about the captive orca, Tilikum. The documentary chronicles Tilikum’s life in captivity while examining the conditions that SeaWorld’s orcas live under. Cowperthwaite argues that SeaWorld mistreats their Orcas and intentionally misinforms both their employees and the general public. Rhetorical analysis reveals that Cowperthwaite uses emotional appeals and juxtaposition to sway the viewer to her perspective.

    Read More

  • Argumentative Essay On Orca Captivity

    942 Words  | 2 Pages

    A trip to the aquarium to see an orca show sounds like every child’s dream. In the past decades, SeaWorld and similar parks had done a phenomenal job implanting the image of the adorable, human-loving orca in the minds of the general public. However, recent orca attacks, such as the fatal attack of trainer Dawn Brancheau at SeaWorld in 2009, has surged numerous debates over their captivity. Further research by experts have shown that orca shows and captivity is harmful towards the animals and does not contribute to conservation. The story of the orca is an exemplifying tale on the horror of animal shows.

    Read More

  • Blackfish Documentary Analysis

    682 Words  | 2 Pages

    The documentary Blackfish, is about SeaWorld and all the mishaps that occurred there and whether or not SeaWorld could be held responsible for the tragedies financially, and if they were responsible to tell the public as well as the employee's of SeaWorld, to let them know what happened to previous trainers before Tilikum came to SeaWorld. And why SeaWorld justifies the continued existence for animal captivity as well as the breeding of the captive animals. In the documentary you notice how SeaWorld it’s corporation was not really concerned with the mishaps that would happen and how every time something occurred Tilikum the killer whale was somehow involved. And instead of stopping the captivity of the killer whales they would just move him from location to location trying to keep everything quiet from the attacks from each location. This shows that SeaWorld has no justification for the captivity of the killer whales and is just trying to make profit off the public by keeping their number one event going.

    Read More

More about Tilikum, An Orca At Sea World

Open Document