Skip to main content
Kent Academic Repository

Impressions: Whales and Human Relationship in Myth, Tradition and Law

Harrop, Stuart R. (2011) Impressions: Whales and Human Relationship in Myth, Tradition and Law. In: Brakes, P. and Simmonds, M.P., eds. Whales and Dolphins - Cognition, Culture, Conservation and Human Perceptions. Earthscan, London, pp. 9-23. ISBN 978-1-84971-224-8. (The full text of this publication is not currently available from this repository. You may be able to access a copy if URLs are provided) (KAR id:27910)

The full text of this publication is not currently available from this repository. You may be able to access a copy if URLs are provided.
Official URL:
http://lccn.loc.gov/2010047848

Abstract

The predicament of whales and whaling provides a focus for very different perspectives and a battle ground for a range of epistemic groups that are shaped and informed by multiple influences: myths, traditions, heritage, practices, ethics, laws and aspects of knowledge. These different perspectives are guarded and reinforced and provide the basis for validation of each group’s political stance within the International Whaling Commission and other regulatory fori dealing with the predicament of whales. In this chapter samples of these perspectives are examined as they relate particularly to controversial aspects of polar whaling where a low-key battle has been fought for some years now albeit with sporadic skirmishes rather than constant fighting. A key area for conflict is the granting by the IWC of aboriginal subsistence exemptions for whaling. Specific questions may be extracted from the political haze that beleaguers whaling politics. These include the need to define the meaning of “aboriginal” in the context of the loss of traditions and the developmental transitions of indigenous people and the need to determine the extent to which traditional whaling may cross-over from the status of "subsistence" to "commercial" . By examining aspects of the root perspectives and influences that relate to these questions it is hoped that some meaning may be discerned which may contribute to shortening, if only by minutes, the long days spent debating the fate of the great whales.

Item Type: Book section
Subjects: H Social Sciences
Q Science
K Law
G Geography. Anthropology. Recreation
Divisions: Divisions > Division of Human and Social Sciences > School of Anthropology and Conservation
Depositing User: Stuart Harrop
Date Deposited: 10 Jun 2011 13:03 UTC
Last Modified: 16 Nov 2021 10:06 UTC
Resource URI: https://kar.kent.ac.uk/id/eprint/27910 (The current URI for this page, for reference purposes)

University of Kent Author Information

Harrop, Stuart R..

Creator's ORCID:
CReDIT Contributor Roles:
  • Depositors only (login required):

Total unique views for this document in KAR since July 2020. For more details click on the image.