Florida State University Libraries Electronic Theses, Treatises and Dissertations The Graduate School 2006 Humandolphin Encounter Spaces: A Qualitative Investigation of the Geographies and Ethics of Swim-with-the-Dolphins Programs Kristin L. Stewart Follow this and additional works at the FSU Digital Library. For more information, please contact [email protected] THE FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF SOCIAL SCIENCES HUMAN–DOLPHIN ENCOUNTER SPACES: A QUALITATIVE INVESTIGATION OF THE GEOGRAPHIES AND ETHICS OF SWIM-WITH-THE-DOLPHINS PROGRAMS By KRISTIN L. STEWART A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Geography in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Degree Awarded Spring Semester, 2006 Copyright © 2006 Kristin L. Stewart All Rights Reserved The members of the Committee approve the dissertation of Kristin L. Stewart defended on March 2, 2006. ________________________________________ J. Anthony Stallins Professor Directing Dissertation ________________________________________ Andrew Opel Outside Committee Member ________________________________________ Janet E. Kodras Committee Member ________________________________________ Barney Warf Committee Member Approved: ________________________________________________ Barney Warf, Chair, Department of Geography The Office of Graduate Studies has verified and approved the above named committee members. ii To Jessica a person, not a thing iii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I am indebted to all those who supported, encouraged, guided and inspired me during this research project and personal journey. Although I cannot fully express the depth of my gratitude, I would like to share a few words of sincere thanks. First, thank you to the faculty and students in the Department of Geography at Florida State University. I am blessed to have found a home in geography. In particular, I would like to thank my advisor, Tony Stallins, whose encouragement, advice, and creativity allowed me to pursue and complete this project. A special thanks to Barney Warf for contributing so much insight with regard to philosophies of science, geographic thought and social theory, and for thoughtfully engaging with me over questions of animal consciousness. And to Jan Kodras, whose careful suggestions were crucial and whose commitment to social justice inspires me to strive for a better world. I also appreciate Andy Opel’s enthusiastic willingness to join my committee near the project’s completion—your presence and contribution truly enriched the journey. I especially wish to acknowledge Bill Lynn, whose direction, wisdom, advice, and friendship were immensely important throughout this journey. Our conversations about geography, ethics and animals kept me engaged, challenged, and inspired, and your enduring influence in this project, and in my life, has been truly wonderful. My warmest appreciation to Jennifer Wolch for comments on portions of this manuscript, as well as the tremendous contributions you and others have made to the establishment and flourishing of animal geography as an important discipline. Many thanks to all who shared their experiences and perspectives with me, including the dedicated people at Dolphins Plus, the National Marine Fisheries Service, and the crew of the Gulf Stream Eagle. I especially appreciate the thoughtful insights of Naomi Rose, Toni Frohoff, and Trevor Spradlin. I owe a special debt to Denis Richard, who welcomed me into his organization and introduced me to many key people and ideas related to encounter issues in Panama City Beach, Florida. In addition, I am grateful to the DeVoe Moore Center at Florida State University for financial support of my research. For Sally Jensen, “Dr. Sally,” my heartfelt thanks; I am forever grateful to you for standing with me against the gremlins and guiding me through to the end. Micheala Denny, Katelind Markey, Susan Wagner, Helen Lukic, and Kim Crittenden, to you and all of my friends and family, thank you for your endless enthusiasm, contribution, compassion and understanding. Most importantly, for my husband, Ben Clabaugh: there is no acknowledgement, thanks or statement of gratitude that could do justice to your abiding influence in my life. I can only offer my never-ending, deepest thank you for your intellectual insights and loving support. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS List of Tables ................................................................................................................................. ix List of Figures................................................................................................................................. x Abstract........................................................................................................................................xiii CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................... 1 Disciplinary Themes: Geography, Ethics and Animals.............................................................. 2 Justice, Ethics, and Geography................................................................................................... 2 Animals in Geography................................................................................................................ 5 Animal Geographies: Putting Animals in Their Place ........................................................... 6 Material Boundaries: Animals and the Making of Place........................................................ 7 Conceptual Boundaries: Human Identity and Animal Subjectivity ....................................... 8 Ethics, Humans and Other Animals.......................................................................................... 10 Critical Reflexivity ................................................................................................................... 12 Why Dolphins?..................................................................................................................... 13 Understanding Dolphin–Human Encounter Spaces: A Brief Outline ...................................... 15 CHAPTER 2 A GEOHISTORY OF DOLPHIN–HUMAN INTERACTIONS........................... 16 Knowing Dolphins.................................................................................................................... 19 Contemporary Dolphin–Human Interactions............................................................................ 23 Defining Encounters ................................................................................................................. 24 Dolphins on Display ................................................................................................................. 25 They Call Him Flipper, Flipper … ........................................................................................... 27 Dolphin Minds and Human Imaginations................................................................................. 28 Dolphins and the Marine Mammal Protection Act................................................................... 29 Key Terms Defined .............................................................................................................. 31 Going in for a Closer Look: Human–Dolphin Encounters Today............................................ 34 Swimming With Dolphins in Captivity................................................................................ 35 Swimming With Dolphins in the Wild................................................................................. 37 Harassment and NMFS’ Protect Dolphins Campaign.............................................................. 41 Chameleon Dolphin .................................................................................................................. 43 CHAPTER 3 THEORIZING A MORE-THAN-HUMAN WORLD ........................................... 44 Part I: Posthuman Pluralism ..................................................................................................... 45 An Interpretive Tradition: Humanism and Hermeneutics.................................................... 45 Pluralistic Geographic Thought............................................................................................ 53 The “New” Cultural Geography........................................................................................... 54 Contemporary Nature–Society Investigations...................................................................... 57 Reflective Thinking About Constructionism........................................................................ 59 Realists and Constructions Both Conceive of Nature and Society in Dualistic Terms........ 60 v Actor Network Theory ......................................................................................................... 61 Ethics in Context .................................................................................................................. 64 Practical Ethics ..................................................................................................................... 67 Posthuman Pluralism Defined .............................................................................................. 70 Part II: Anthropocentrism and the Human–Animal Divide...................................................... 70 Us and “Them” ..................................................................................................................... 71 Some Non-Western Concepts of Nature .............................................................................