Evolution Of The Bear Essay

Mankind has had an interesting relationship with bears for many years. The symbolic nature of the bear has changed from one meaning to another entirely. The effects of popular culture have ultimately shaped how bears have been perceived and what connotations are associated with them. Various articles, films, and other references from modern day provide ample evidence of how bears have been perceived and they show the evolution of their representations. Some examples are the documentary Grizzly Man, articles such as Teddy Bear: The Dearest, Nearest, and Scariest, Wildlife documentaries: from classical forms to reality TV, and ‘‘Hey, They’re Just Like Us!’’ Representations of the Animal World in the Discovery Channel’s Nature Programming, as
Ideas have been developed from scholarly articles, films, television shows, and derived from other references. There have been children’s television programs and stories like Paddington, Little Bear, Yogi Bear, The Berenstain Bears, Winnie the Pooh, and Smokey the Bear. Some of these bear characters started in the early 1920s and are still around today. Of these anecdotes, these shows usually entail some type of moral lesson that could be familial and socially applied. There is also some emotional connection viewers would feel with these cartoons because they imply the idea that bears are cuddly, sweet, harmless creatures. These shows also promote the fact that they are indeed commodities. The idea that teddy bears can be bought in exchange for different emotions, applies to television programs and films as well. Shows and movies are commercialized just as much as teddy bears are, just in different ways but for ultimately the same reasons. The contemporary world has shown many ideas one how popular culture in different forms has defined not only mankind’s relationship with wildlife but specifically with