Hunters in the Snow by Pieter Bruegel the Elder (1565)
Our species has changed a lot in the past couple of thousand years. We went from hunter-gatherers to farmers and pastoralists. From there we developed early horticultural societies, the basis the ancient civilizations and empires, which fell away into feudalism, which was replaced with early mercantile societies, then full capitalism and the early colonial empires ( with the Portuguese being the first). Then came the industrial revolution and then full-scale imperialism. Then we have our societies today, which are now based upon economic globalization and information technology.
All of these forces have changed the way we humans live. They have also deluded us into thinking we’re above the natural world– perhaps the most dangerous delusion of modern civilization.
Who knows where we will end up next?
We’ve come a long way. We live so differently from our ancestors now that I wonder that, if we ever were to meet them and speak the same language, would we be able to carry on a conversation about anything?
Probably not on many things. Our lives are that much different.
But I think we might be able to talk about one thing.
Dogs.
Dogs have been with us a long time. They were with us before we planted the first crops, before we built the first houses, and before we built the first cities. They were with us before we ever had sheep, goats, cows, and horses– and long before we had golden hamsters and gerbils.
Who knows when the first dogs joined us? It happened at some point between 10,000 and 135,000 years ago, depending upon who you ask and which data set is being used. My own personal estimates pointing to between 15,000 and 20,000 years ago.
But whatever the exact date of our union, dogs and humans have been at it a while. We’ve evolved together. We are like hand in glove. We say they are “almost human”– but that’s another delusion. They aren’t almost human.
They are still dogs, and we are still people. We see the world differently. However, I will admit that dogs do a remarkable job of trying to meet us part way. I don’t think we could ever say the same about captive Bengal tigers, and we certain couldn’t say it about virtually all captive wolves.
For better or worse, dogs and people are in this together. We can only hope that we use our big brains to make it better for both of us and for the planet as a whole. That’s the challenge the modern world has laid down for us. Will we be able to rise to the occasion this time? Or will our egos fail us once again?
(Please forgive my indulgence in art from the Northern Renaissance– especially Netherlandish art. Part of that indulgence is a I like it– and I’m of partial Dutch and Frisian ancestry.)
Good post. Unfortunately the belief of so many people that we are above natural laws is very likely to be our downfall.
You have an excellent blog. Lots of interesting stuff!
Speaking of dogs from long ago, check this one.
There’s a street in London, not far from where the Jack the Ripper Murders happened, which was once a shallow moat or ditch.
The people threw their dead dogs into the ditch, and that’s what the street today is called “Houndsditch.”
That’s a lovely painting. :)
Bruegel always makes me thing of William Carlos Williams.
I haven’t seen this painting in the flesh, but I have seen the wonderful collection of Flemish art at the Prado. I hope you have, but if you haven’t, I hope you will.
I love Bruegel the Elder’s peasant paintings.