Animals as Tradition by Boria Sax

I really wanted to post about the reading Animals as Tradition by Boria Sax when it was assigned, but I never got around to it. After writing our most recent paper about it, I think that now is a good time to talk about the reading even though it was assigned to us during week three. This is the most interesting reading I read in this class in my opinion. In this article, Sax argues that the only way to slow the mass extinction of species occurring on our planet in this day and age is to incorporate animals into our culture. If we can view animals as part of our traditions, we will learn to respect them and work towards their protection. This really intrigued me, as I am an environmental studies major with a passion for endangered and threatened species. I have never heard this argument before, but found it very convincing and viable. I think this could be a very effective approach to protecting vulnerable species. If you think about it, animals do play a huge role in our culture and traditions. In this class, we have learned how animals are incorporated into cultures through ancient tales. These animals become valued as sacred through these tales and lead us to value and protect them. Furthermore, animals are a biological tradition of the history of our earth. They are a part of our history and a tradition since the early stages of evolution began. If humans realize this, I think we will then feel motivated to value and protect all species. Overall, I really enjoyed reading this article and learning about Sax's perspective on the pressing issue of mass extinction.