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A review by birdkeeperklink
Beautiful Jim Key: The Lost History of a Horse and a Man Who Changed the World by Mim Eichler Rivas
5.0
I loved this book. Jim Key was a true wonder horse.
The only reason I can think of for him to be forgotten and Clever Hans to be so well-known is the prevailing cynicism in society. The disappointing story is so much easier to believe than the story of a horse who really could make change and spell, even under the conditions of the 'Clever Hans test'.
Another aspect is that people, for some reason, don't like to hear that animals can think, that they have personality, that they have feelings. They are nowhere near the complexity of humans, of course, but they do have those things, and that's something many humans don't want to face. I'm still unsure why, if it rattles their belief in the superiority of man, if it challenges their belief in a creator-deity, or perhaps it makes them feel guilty for the way we treat animals? I don't know. But whatever the reason, they won't face a truth that is easily observable merely by spending time with an animal.
And if you try to argue, 'Oh, well, it's just instincts and hormones and chemicals in the brain, it's not really thinking', then I submit to you that humans are no different. We are still not sure how much of our minds and personalities are made up of mere instincts and chemicals. Does the source make them any less valid? Does the fact that someone is depressed merely because their brain chemicals are unbalanced make their depression any less distressing? No. So why should a horse's sorrow at being left alone in a pasture be any less valid? Certainly, that sorrow is caused by the horse's instinctual desire for companionship, but that doesn't make it any less real, nor the horse less lonely.
Anyway, that little rant aside (which the book doesn't touch on, so don't be put off from the book because of it), this is an excellent book. There are a few slow parts in the beginning, but once you get past those, you will find an engaging and moving true story.
The only reason I can think of for him to be forgotten and Clever Hans to be so well-known is the prevailing cynicism in society. The disappointing story is so much easier to believe than the story of a horse who really could make change and spell, even under the conditions of the 'Clever Hans test'.
Another aspect is that people, for some reason, don't like to hear that animals can think, that they have personality, that they have feelings. They are nowhere near the complexity of humans, of course, but they do have those things, and that's something many humans don't want to face. I'm still unsure why, if it rattles their belief in the superiority of man, if it challenges their belief in a creator-deity, or perhaps it makes them feel guilty for the way we treat animals? I don't know. But whatever the reason, they won't face a truth that is easily observable merely by spending time with an animal.
And if you try to argue, 'Oh, well, it's just instincts and hormones and chemicals in the brain, it's not really thinking', then I submit to you that humans are no different. We are still not sure how much of our minds and personalities are made up of mere instincts and chemicals. Does the source make them any less valid? Does the fact that someone is depressed merely because their brain chemicals are unbalanced make their depression any less distressing? No. So why should a horse's sorrow at being left alone in a pasture be any less valid? Certainly, that sorrow is caused by the horse's instinctual desire for companionship, but that doesn't make it any less real, nor the horse less lonely.
Anyway, that little rant aside (which the book doesn't touch on, so don't be put off from the book because of it), this is an excellent book. There are a few slow parts in the beginning, but once you get past those, you will find an engaging and moving true story.