Identifying Persuasive Techniques in Blackfish Essay Example

One of the most entertaining activities one can do is go to the zoo. At the zoo one can see animals and creatures that they would never be able to see on their own; however, not everybody believes that keeping animals in captivity is morally right. One example of this is SeaWorld keeping Orcas in captivity. For many years people protested against keeping these highly intelligent animals in captivity; this is made obvious in the film Blackfish. In this documentary, the director uses scientific facts, historical events, and modes of persuasion to argue against keeping Orcas in confinement, specifically at the theme park SeaWorld.

In the documentary, the viewer learns that orcas, also known as Killer Whales,  are extremely intelligent and emotional animals. According to neuroscientist Lori Marino, “these are animals that have highly elaborate emotional lives.” In the wild, even after baby orcas grow up they never leave their mother, showing how emotionally attached they are to their family. In theme parks it is very common for infant whales to be separated from their mothers. For example, mother whale Kusaka vocally mourned greatly once her baby, Takara, was taken to another park; these poignant mourning sounds created by Kusaka were never heard before. According to Howard Garrett, orca researcher, orcas in the wild live life’s equivalent to human life spans; however, this is not the case for orcas in captivity. Killer whales in captivity live from 25 up to 35 years when kept in theme parks such as SeaWorld. Looking at this data alone the viewer is able to know that orcas' health suffers while in captivity. One noticeable difference one can see from orcas in the wild compared to one in captivity is their dorsal fin. In nature killer whales with collapsed dorsal fins affect about one percent of the male population; at theme parks such as SeaWorld, collapsed dorsal fins affect one hundred percent of the male population. SeaWorld claimed to cover this up by saying that fallen dorsal fins occur in twenty five percent of the population's dorsal fins collapse when they grow older. This deception used by SeaWorld was used to cover up the poor mental and physical health of their orcas. No one argues that these magnificent whales are entertaining, but there’s no doubt that confinement has a negative impact both physically and mentally on these animals. 

In the opening scene of the film Blackfish, the viewer first sees an emergency 911 call reporting the death of Dawn Brancheau. The director intended to show the audience of the deaths and attacks that have occurred over the time of orcas being in captivity. The director also includes mentioning the deaths of trainers Keltie Byrne, Alexis Martìnez, and a man named Daniel Dukes to show to the viewer the violence and danger of these apex predators. Blackfish presents a countless amount of lethal attacks that greatly harmed SeaWorld’s trainers. The viewer is able to see many of these videos of the attacks occurring. One poignant film that is shown to the audience is when trainer Ken Peters is pulled repeatedly to the bottom of the pool. These unfortunate historical events are included in the film to try and persuade the audience that keeping orcas in captivity isn’t only unethical but dangerous. 

The last persuasive technique director Gabriela Cowperthawaite uses in the film Blackfish are the modes of persuasion used to persuade the audience to end the keeping of orcas in captivity. Pathos, ethos, and logos are all used multiple times throughout the documentary. The audience sees the use of ethos when the director includes the interview of whale catcher John Crowe. He says “this is the worst thing that I’ve ever done, is hunt the whale(orca).” Or when former director of SeaLand, Steve Huxter, would say that “It didn’t feel good. It just didn’t and it was just wrong.” Statements like these make the viewer think to themselves “is keeping orcas in captivity the ethical thing to do?” To emotionally move viewers, a film of Kusaka the mother whale who had her child taken from her is included in the documentary. In Blackfish they specifically say that Kusaka’s baby was “kidnapped” to emotionally move whoever may be watching. Even though this is a human quality they still used it because kidnapping has a negative tone associated with its definition; therefore, people begin to see the flaws of SeaWorld’s techniques. Images of injured trainers and weaker orcas are shown so there can be no doubt that logically holding orcas in captivity is wrong. This would be the use of logos; used to convince an audience using reasoning and facts. It is a fact that three trainers and a civilian have lost their lives due to orcas attacking, so the most logical conclusion would be to not have them in captivity.

The use of scientific facts, historical events, and modes of persuasion are all used in the documentary Blackfish to persuade the audience that orcas in captivity are wrong. Ethical, moral, and logical reasoning are all used in the film to leave no doubt that theme parks, such as SeaWorld, need to end their orca breeding program and release their whales back in the wild. After watching this documentary the question that then comes up is “should there be any animals forced into captivity against their will?"