Episode 17 -Animal-Themed Tattoo Narratives
In this episode, we discuss animal-themed tattoo narratives, which were the subject of co-host Kris Hill’s MA Dissertation (Anthrozoology, University of Exeter, 2018). The findings were subsequently written up and published as two papers in Anthrozoös (Hill 2020, 2021).
In our discussion, we primarily focused on the first paper (Hill 2020), which explored tattoos dedicated to individual companion animals under the framework of multispecies kinship and continuing bonds as griefwork.
Do you have tattoos dedicated to companion animal? If so, we’d love to see them! Feel free to join and share your tattoos and stories in the Furever Tattoos Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/630586010988899
Please subscribe to get notified about our next podcast!
Follow us on Twitter: @TheAnthrozoopod
Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/anthrozoopod/
PodCrew:
Kris Hill PhD Student, University of Exeter kh458@exeter.ac.uk https://katzenlife.wordpress.com/
Dr. Michelle Szydlowski Assistant Professor at Beacon College, US ms835@exeter.ac.uk www.internationalelephants.org
Sarah Oxley Heaney PhD Student, University of Exeter sh750@exeter.ac.uk www.kissingsharks.com
Podlet Guest:
Kris Hill PhD Student, University of Exeter kh458@exeter.ac.uk https://katzenlife.wordpress.com/
References and Further Reading
Betty Rose Helps to Immortalize Beloved Pets: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6EQgZItOk1A
Calf 269 - The Israeli Calf That Started a Mass Tattoo Movement: https://www.haaretz.com/2013-03-21/ty-article/.premium/the-israeli-calf-that-started-a-tattoo-movement/0000017f-dc50-db5a-a57f-dc7a5e840000
Charles, N. (2014). “Animals Just Love You as You Are”: Experiencing kinship across the species barrier. Sociology, 48(4), 715–730.
Charles, N., & Davies, C. A. (2008). My family and other animals: Pets as kin. Sociological Research Online, 13(5), 4. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.5153/sro.1798
Davidson, D. (2016). The Tattoo Project: Commemorative Tattoos, Visual Culture, and the Digital Archive. Toronto, CN: Canadian Scholars.
Davidson, D. (2017). Art embodied: Tattoos as memorials. Bereavement Care, 36(1), 33–40.
DeMello, M. (2000). Bodies of inscription: A cultural history of the modern tattoo community. Durham, NC: Duke University Press.
DeMello, M. (2016). Mourning animals: Rituals and practices surrounding animal death. East Lansing, MI: Michigan State University Press.
Doka, K. (1989). Disenfranchised grief: Recognizing hidden sorrow. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books.
Eason, F. (2019). “Forever in our hearts” online: Virtual deathscapes maintain companion animal presence. OMEGA: Journal of Death and Dying. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0030222819882225
ExtInked project: https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/endangered-tattoos-volunteers-get-inked-help-save-species/
K. Hill (2020). Tattoo narratives: Insights into multispecies kinship and griefwork. Anthrozoös, 33(6), 709-726. DOI: 10.1080/08927936.2020.1824652 https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/08927936.2020.1824652
*Hill 2020 is behind a pay wall, but if you email kh458@exeter.ac.uk she will send you a pre-proof copy.
Hill (2020, 10 October). Furever Tattoos: An Expression of the Lasting Bonds We Form With Companion Animals. International Society of Anthrozoology (ISAZ) Student Blog. https://isazstudent.wordpress.com/2020/10/09/furever-tattoos-an-expression-of-the-lasting-bonds-we-form-with-companion-animals/
K. Hill (2021). Animal-themed tattoo narratives: Insights into ontological perspectives. Anthrozoös. 34(4), 579-596. DOI: 10.1080/08927936.2021.1914441 https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/08927936.2021.1914441
Holland, M. (2012). Social bonding and nurture kinship: Compatibility between cultural and biological approaches. London: Createspace Independent Publishing.
Nelson, M. (2013). Fictive kin, families we choose, and voluntary kin: What does the discourse tell us? Journal of Family Theory & Review, 5, 259–281.
Sahlins, M. (2011a). What kinship is (part one). The Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute, 17(1), 2–19.
Sahlins, M. (2011b). What kinship is (part two). Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute, 17(2), 227–242.
Shir-Vertesh, D. (2012). “Flexible personhood”: Loving animals as family members in Israel. American Anthropologist, 114(3), 420–432.
Weston, K. (1991). Families we choose: Lesbians, gays, kinship. New York, NY: Columbia University Press.