I just saw the viral video of Christian the Lion. It made me sniffle. I almost cried. It is about a lion cub who was domesticated and then re-released in the wild. The story reminded me of “Born Free,” a movie from the 1960s (and it’s quintessential 60s, too). It turns out that the guy who “Born Free” was about helped re-release Christian to the wild. The viral video is a touching reunion between Christian and his caretakers. It made me think of Haraway’s notion of “companion species” and “respecere.” Clearly this animal and his caretakers were in a relationship of respect, communion, and face. Fascinating stuff. There are a couple of versions of the video floating around in the ether, different only in their saccharine soundtracks. Turn the sound off as you watch the video.
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