‘At once pet, ornament, and “subject for dissection”’: The Unstable Status of Marine Animals in Victorian Aquaria
Around the middle of the nineteenth century a new kind of domestic animal entered Victorian homes thanks to the invention of saltwater aquaria. Yet, marine species were very different from other, more usual pets: their marked otherness, and the limited contact allowed by the glass tank, made it more...
Saved in:
| Main Author: | |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Presses Universitaires de la Méditerranée
2018-12-01
|
| Series: | Cahiers Victoriens et Edouardiens |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://journals.openedition.org/cve/4272 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1832581232055025664 |
|---|---|
| author | Silvia Granata |
| author_facet | Silvia Granata |
| author_sort | Silvia Granata |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Around the middle of the nineteenth century a new kind of domestic animal entered Victorian homes thanks to the invention of saltwater aquaria. Yet, marine species were very different from other, more usual pets: their marked otherness, and the limited contact allowed by the glass tank, made it more difficult to understand their behaviour, or to establish relations with them. Thus, numerous aquarium manuals were published: they offered guidance on the management of home tanks, but also instructed readers on how to fully appreciate and enjoy the new hobby; these texts thus provide a valuable source to understand the different ways in which early aquarists saw, conceptualised and related to sea animals. Indeed, I suggest that, due to the unfamiliar nature of most of these species, aquarium texts had a huge impact in shaping people’s perception of them, providing both conceptual frameworks and models for interaction. Through an investigation of the ways in which aquarium manuals represented tank residents and human relations with them, this article explores the unstable status of sea species in Victorian homes, discussing how, and why, they were simultaneously humanised and objectified, floating across the slippery boundaries between the categories of ornament, pet, scientific specimen, and food. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-5158897a329b4ce6a944f158532e15d8 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 0220-5610 2271-6149 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2018-12-01 |
| publisher | Presses Universitaires de la Méditerranée |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Cahiers Victoriens et Edouardiens |
| spelling | doaj-art-5158897a329b4ce6a944f158532e15d82025-01-30T10:22:07ZengPresses Universitaires de la MéditerranéeCahiers Victoriens et Edouardiens0220-56102271-61492018-12-018810.4000/cve.4272‘At once pet, ornament, and “subject for dissection”’: The Unstable Status of Marine Animals in Victorian AquariaSilvia GranataAround the middle of the nineteenth century a new kind of domestic animal entered Victorian homes thanks to the invention of saltwater aquaria. Yet, marine species were very different from other, more usual pets: their marked otherness, and the limited contact allowed by the glass tank, made it more difficult to understand their behaviour, or to establish relations with them. Thus, numerous aquarium manuals were published: they offered guidance on the management of home tanks, but also instructed readers on how to fully appreciate and enjoy the new hobby; these texts thus provide a valuable source to understand the different ways in which early aquarists saw, conceptualised and related to sea animals. Indeed, I suggest that, due to the unfamiliar nature of most of these species, aquarium texts had a huge impact in shaping people’s perception of them, providing both conceptual frameworks and models for interaction. Through an investigation of the ways in which aquarium manuals represented tank residents and human relations with them, this article explores the unstable status of sea species in Victorian homes, discussing how, and why, they were simultaneously humanised and objectified, floating across the slippery boundaries between the categories of ornament, pet, scientific specimen, and food.https://journals.openedition.org/cve/4272scienceliteraturevictorian periodaquariaspeciesaquarium manuals |
| spellingShingle | Silvia Granata ‘At once pet, ornament, and “subject for dissection”’: The Unstable Status of Marine Animals in Victorian Aquaria Cahiers Victoriens et Edouardiens science literature victorian period aquaria species aquarium manuals |
| title | ‘At once pet, ornament, and “subject for dissection”’: The Unstable Status of Marine Animals in Victorian Aquaria |
| title_full | ‘At once pet, ornament, and “subject for dissection”’: The Unstable Status of Marine Animals in Victorian Aquaria |
| title_fullStr | ‘At once pet, ornament, and “subject for dissection”’: The Unstable Status of Marine Animals in Victorian Aquaria |
| title_full_unstemmed | ‘At once pet, ornament, and “subject for dissection”’: The Unstable Status of Marine Animals in Victorian Aquaria |
| title_short | ‘At once pet, ornament, and “subject for dissection”’: The Unstable Status of Marine Animals in Victorian Aquaria |
| title_sort | at once pet ornament and subject for dissection the unstable status of marine animals in victorian aquaria |
| topic | science literature victorian period aquaria species aquarium manuals |
| url | https://journals.openedition.org/cve/4272 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT silviagranata atoncepetornamentandsubjectfordissectiontheunstablestatusofmarineanimalsinvictorianaquaria |