Tuesday, December 15, 2015

In-Class Write on Human Zoos and Ethnological Exhibits


In the late 19th century, the world thrived. After the boom of industrialization came urbanization, and with it came higher incomes, mass populations, new technology, and the growing ideas of citizenship. In the case of mass populations, people from all over the world flooded to big cities, largely in America in search of jobs and entertainment. The sudden culture shock that the previous American citizens faced was heavy and unknowing in the sense that they could cross the street and see hundreds of "exotic" or new cultures, races, and faces that they'd never before seen. 
The new races and ethnicities became segregated and divided and the idea of nationalism became stronger among the white Christian men who had previously lived in the less-populated cities. During the time period, the idea of "human zoos" and "ethnological exhibits" arose from the racial views of the white people and as they began to showcase and examine the diversity, mostly blacks, Indians, Asians, and Eskimos, feelings of racism, evolution, and the definition of slavery began to reveal itself in the truest way possible. Wealthy citizens and merchants like, Taylor Barnum, and even Queen Victoria, began to show off different races in cages, enclosures, or habitats, much like zoo animals, to show off their wealth, and to come across to the community that they were spreading the ideas of knowledge of people of different races, ethnicities, oddities, and even abnormalities, when really it was all for the money.
The showcasing of races came solely from urbanization. Many people wanted to research and explore the people around them and in the article, Ethnographic Exhibitions History I learned that, "these exhibitions were "the result of a conjunction of political, social, and economic factors... a period well known for its interest in distant lands, the discovery of the unknown, and the strange." (Blanchard, et al) It was clear to the public that the ranks of social classes and racial values were based on who was displayed in these exhibitions, and even today scholars and historians say that the exhibitions were for the money. According to Living Ethnological Exhibits, in 1886, London's government showcased a "worldy experience" where two Indian men were shown in their "natural habitat," weaving cloth and sitting in low wooded areas. The purpose of this exhibition was to show the craftsmanship and traditions of the Indians, a concept that Queen Victoria thought was lost in London at the time. The Prince of Wales was quoted saying, "[to] stimulate commerce and strengthen the bonds of union now existing in every portion of her Majersty's Empire," "her Majesty," being Queen Victoria. It was easy to see that the Indian men in the exhibition were made popular by Queen Victoria and that even the Prince of Wales was allured by the "oriental fantasy" of it all. However, all of this was still wildly racist and only for the commerce of it all. Lights were installed outdoors so that it was an attraction that could be seen at all hours, and the underground made a railway stop at the exhibit, which only further announced and marketed the exhibit, not to mention that Queen Victoria and the government of London were supporting it all. The glamour and excitement put the exhibition in a positive light so that others would be attracted to it and with the additions of new technology to the establishment it seemed to legitimize the racism and the caging of the Indians.
         Though the enclosing of Indians in 1866 was bad, it was only seen as a whimsical and light-hearted attraction, and as urbanization continued, and people lost interest in specific races, wealthy statesmen and workers tried harder to wow the people of the city, without concern as to the racism and cruelty of it all. People began to lean towards showing blacks in an even harsher light than before, they went from putting a black man behind bars, to putting him behind bars with his entire family and an elephant. This attracted plenty of people and continued the steady filling of the "zookeepers" pockets while still keeping the doors open year round. Business continued to boom and people thought nothing of the actual strangers and aliens inside the cages. There was no connection made between the people looking from the outside, to the people in enclosures, and because of that, people dehumanized one another and began to see the person in bars as an animal, not another human.
          Business again began to drop after seeing wild animals in the enclosures with the exhibits, and again, salesmen and wealthy businessmen began to think of more ways to showcase and grab the audience's attention. One of the most successful men to do this was, Taylor Barnum, who specialized in the showing off of "freaks" in his ethnological exhibits. He was in a sense a connoisseur, because with the use of marketing and broadcasting, he was able to keep his circuses and freak shows around for over fifty years and he completely revolutionized the meaning of entertainment. According to Ethnographic Exhibitions History, freak shows and the like gave human zoos the title of "ethnic shows with more content" instead of "ludric and standalone." As stated in a Jim Crow Interview, Barnums human zoos lead to, "[the] construction of an imaginary Other... the theorization of a "hiearchy of races"... [and] construction of colonial empires." Barnum brought a whole new meaning to entertainment, largely due to the fact that instead of seeing the different races and people behind glass, he brought out the life in them, they sang, danced, and preformed at his circuses, and instead of just showcasing different ethnicities and cultures, he showed the world freaks, human oddities, estranged people, and others with hidden and unnatural talents that were made to be seen by the people. Barnum marketed his freaks and aliens by giving them crazy names and having portraits done of them as to make them look weak or strong. In Barnum's posters and propaganda about his freaks, he would accentuate anything that would bring an audience, whether it be webbed feet, deformities, abnormalities, or the plain appearance of a character of his. One of his most important and showstopping characters, was "The What-Is-It," later to be named Zip the Pinhead. '
         Zip the Pinhead was a normal guy with a head shaped like an egg, and a large frame. Speculations had been made about Zip the Pinhead's personality and his mental capacity, but none had been proven. Barnum bought Zip at a young age, according to The What-Is-It Exhibiton, Barnum used Zip as a "pleasing" and "playful" exhibit that would welcome all families and audiences. Zip the Pinhead was said to be a creature from the depths of Africa, and it was inconclusive if Zip could speak, walk, or function in the civilization in the late 19th century because he was said to be half man, half animal. All of these theories were false, and Zip the Pinhead was actually just a man who preformed day and night for Mr. Barnum, and he did his job fantastically. Barnum, and many other circus leaders and freak show enthusiasts would embellish disabilities and oddities, and according to a Review of Freak Show: Oddities Amusement,  they would "juxtapose conventionality and extraordinary features" to the highest degree. All of these exhibits, personalities, and characters, were mostly self made freaks, who strived to be odd for the popularity, money, and acting aspect of it all.
         Whether glass, bars, cages, or enclosures, the showcasing of freaks and ethnicities was a sign of supply and demand and the urbanization of the late 19th century. Many people played a part in the showing and telling of different populations, however, according to the Review of Freak Show: Oddities Amusement, "some individuals appearing in "native villages" at the 1893 Chicago World's Fair were in fact recruited from local pool halls." So really, these circus managers and businessmen were pulling people off of the streets if they thought they saw promise or talent in any of them. The reputation of freak shows and circuses, ethnological exhibits, and human zoos were exemplified to show the new populations that came to great cities, and ideas of segregation and human division sprung forth. The urbanization and uses of technology, broadcasting, and heavy uses of marketing either made or broke an exhibit, and people developed ideas of race, citizenship, and social status because of it. 


Sources
Mathur, Saloni. “Living Ethnological Exhibits: The Case of 1886”. Cultural Anthropology 15.4 (2000): 492–524. Web.   I used this source to learn about the segregation and the Colombian exhibition. 
"The Presentation of Freaks." Explanation of Freaks. Barnum American Museum, n.d. Web. 8 Dec. 2015. I used this source as a viewpoint and backing for how freaks were only used for money even though they were objects of racism.


"What Is It? Essay." What Is It? Essay. Barnum American Museum, n.d. Web. 8 Dec. 2015. I used this source to specifically exemplify a character, who was black, but who was also considered a freak and human oddity so I could explain that they were all objects of money.


Dubin, Steven C.. American Journal of Sociology 95.1 (1989): 268–269. Web. I used this source to look deeper into freak shows from the perspective of today and from a scholarly outlook.
I used this source to look at the racism at the World's Fairs among black people specifically. 
"The What Is It? Exhibit." What Is It? Exhibit. American Social History Productions, Inc., 2015. Web. 8 Dec. 2015. I used this source to add depth to my point about an example of a freak who was of a different race and was also considered a human oddity.


Schofield, Hugh. "Human Zoos: When Real People Were the Exhibits."Human Zoos: When Real People Were the Exhibits - BBC News. BBC News, 27 Dec. 2011. Web. 8 Dec. 2015.  I used this more current source to show that people today still think of this as a phenomenon and that there were exhibits and museums for human zoos additionally. 
Crow, Jim. "Human Zoos." Interview. Jim Crow Museum: Question of the Month. Jim Crow Museum of Racist Memorabilia, Oct. 2006. Web. 8 Dec. 2015. I used this source because it was an intelligent interview and mentioned the World's Fair and Taylor Barnum being one of the first to run a human zoo successfully.


Yang, Melissa. "Ethnographic Exhibitions: A Short History." Ethnographic Exhibitions. N.p., 2009. Web. 8 Dec. 2015. I used this source to further my research on human oddities and freak shows before looking into Zip the Pinhead more thoroughly.




Pictures





Official Catalogue. 1886. National Library of Canada, London. Colonial and Indian Exhibition, 1886. Web. 10 Dec. 2015.

1931. Paris. Deep Racism: The Forgotten History of Human Zoos. Web. 14 Dec. 2015. 
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