Timothy
Treadwell spent 13 summers with grizzly bears in
Alaska. In 2003, Treadwell died from a gruesome grizzly bear attack. Some view
him as an excellent nature documenter while others see him as a crazy environmentalist or an
unintentionally bad person. It is hard to say which view is the correct view.
Maybe both hold some truth about Timothy.
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| Timothy Treadwell
Director Werner Herzog shows both views of Timothy
Treadwell in his documentary Grizzly Man. Herzog does an excellent job
of remaining unbiased throughout his documentary of Treadwell. He does share
his opinion a few times but does not let his opinion set the tone of the film.
Herzog interviews Alaskan natives, who do not like what Treadwell does, and
close friends and colleagues of Timothy, who think he is doing something
amazing. Everyone that is interviewed agrees on at least one view of Timothy:
His death is a tragedy.
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Svan Haakanson Jr. is an Alaskan native and the
Alutiiq Museum Director. In his interview with Herzog, Haakanson states
that Treadwell crossed the line drawn between humans and bears. He believes
that Treadwell is disrespecting the bears by trying to be like the bears.
Treadwell was doing more harm than good for the bears by allowing them to feel
comfortable around a human. Marc Gaede, an ecologist, read from hate mail
sent to Treadwell. The letter calls him a ‘crazy environmentalist’ and accuses
him of only seeking a way to make money. These interviews show the negative
views of Treadwell.
The interviews of Treadwell’s close friends and
family show a positive side to him. He is not praised for what he did but they
do speak highly of him. His co-founder of Grizzly People, Jewel Palovok, views
his work as a visionary masterpiece. Herzog believes Treadwell’s videos are
beautiful because they display the essence of nature.
Treadwell walked a fine line between an
extraordinary nature documenter and an obsessive lunatic. In my opinion, his
video footage is amazing and raw. The bond he has between the foxes impressed
me more than the bond he had with the bears. I also believe he was a bit crazy.
There has to be a line between humans and wild animals. The danger of his
situation might have been thrilling for viewers and Treadwell but I do agree
with Haakanson. Treadwell’s presence was showing the bears that humans are not
dangerous. It could pose problems for the bears when poachers appear. The
animals he lived among and observed were wild animals. He constantly said,
"These animals can kill me.” However, he ventured closer and made more
daring moves. In the end, it killed him. He let down his guard after 13 years
of being safe.
Timothy Treadwell and his fox friend
Pictures:
http://animal.discovery.com/tv/grizzly-man-diaries/timothy-treadwell/images/timothy-treadwell-02.jpg
Video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dNX8NdvJ_ZA
