'Shamu' Teaches Humans a Thing or Two
Author Amy Sutherland says that many rules that apply to animals apply to humans, too. Photo Courtesy of Amy Sutherland hide caption
In 2006, the most e-mailed story in The New York Times was an op-ed about one woman's attempt to get her husband to pick up his dirty laundry using the same techniques employed by animal trainers.
Now, author Amy Sutherland has turned the op-ed into a book: What Shamu Taught Me About Life, Love, and Marriage: Lessons for People from Animals and Their Trainers.
In what Sutherland calls a kind of "reverse anthropomorphism," she says that she couldn't help but see parallels between animal and human behavior.
"True, people are more complicated than animals," she writes, "but maybe not as much as we assume ... Animal trainers showed me that there are universal rules of behavior that cut across all species. Why should we be any different?"
Web Resources
What Shamu Taught Me About Love and Marriage
Lessons for People from Animals and Their Trainers