Jenna Layton Rough Draft 1 Informative Genre Blackfish A genre is defined as a specific type of music, film, or writing that has a specific goal in mind. Today, genre is everywhere; we hear it when we listen to music, we see it when we watch television or when we use social networking sites, and we may even feel it when you hear your favorite song. The music genre is recognized by different categories of music, such as Jazz, Rock, Country, and Soft Listening. Genre is a common platform that most commonly identifies style. In Film, genre can be Westerns, Horror, or Drama. In literature, genre may be considered Fiction and Non-Fiction. In the movie, Blackfish, several elements of genre can be identified. As I examine these components of the movie genre, I will share with you the story of Blackfish and highlight some of the evident as well as common themes represented in this documentary. Could you imagine being trapped in a small enclosure for the rest of you life if you used to travel across entire oceans? The documentary Blackfish is a genre of persuasion and information that inveigles their audience to become passionate about SeaWorld’s orcas and also attempts to justify why the orca, Tilikum, has killed several of his trainers. However, it seems in this move, the trainers and researchers of the film don’t blame the whale for the death of the trainers, but blame the conditions in which he had to live in. The message I received from this movie is that they want to convince their audience to believe that the only way to keep this from happening again is to release them and no longer keep these poor whales trapped in a giant bathtub. Throughout the documentary there are videos, images, and individuals that influence the audience to think this certain way about what the orcas of SeaWorld really need. In captivity, the whales have nowhere to travel, no new places to explore and are often isolated from the other whales of SeaWorld. This creates a problem for this type of animal because according to _______ “Orcas are animals that travel 100 miles a day always accompanied by their family.” Also known to being emotional and loving animals, orcas tend to mourn, as humans do, for long periods of time if they have lost a loved one. Therefore, as an orca stuck in a pool, separated from his or her family, and from everything they know, it can be justified as to why Tilikum reached his breaking point and killed people that he had worked with many times before. Typically, a documentary is a type of genre that is set out to inform their audience and convince them to adopt a certain belief. Documentaries are movies and literature works that take real life situations and attempt to formulate support which many times solicits action by its audience to support a cause. The movie Blackfish does just that and is a fine example of the documentary genre. Documentaries onto themselves are a genre of film and this film is one that informs and persuades an argument. The elements of creating this genre can be further defined using examples of ethos, pathos and logos. Blackfish provides ethos, also known as credibility, by allowing “trained” orca trainers to inform the audience about what they do or did with the orcas and further explain the reasons as to why they believe Tilikum behaved in such a violent manor. It is made clear to the audience that the majority of the speakers were former SeaWorld
Jenna Layton Rough Draft 1 trainers. As they speak about the whales, there is a note that pops up at the bottom of the screen that states their full name as well as their occupation. As an audience, we consider these individuals credible because they have worked with the animals on a daily bases, training and feeding them. Therefore, we can believe that they are a primary resource in the film Blackfish. Credibility is also given to the individuals in the film who are orca and/or whale experts who really know what they are talking about; hence the word expert. These individuals are well aware of the conditions in which these whales need to live a happy and fulfilled life; being stuck in a big tank is not one of them. Pathos “Can you imagine being in a small concrete enclosure for your life when you’re used to swimming 100 miles a day?” “When you look into their eyes, you know somebody is home.” -John Jett former SeaWorld trainer Logos