This dissertation is a contribution to the ethnography of contemporary indigenous reindeer pastoralism in Norway: specifically, to the study of the neglected fields of reindeer killing and slaughtering practice. Its central contention is that in recent decades, the proliferation of human powers vested in the conduct of reindeer slaughter has created new conditions for practice, placing the identities of reindeer and herders at stake in new and still only dimly conceptualized ways. By exploring these, the dissertation aims to broaden existing debates concerning the so-called modernization of pastoral practice in Norway, drawing attention to some of its neglected aspects and inscribing them in a new register. Two principal strands inform the theoretical framework: one, approaches to the social study of knowledge that emphasise its practical, non-verbal and material aspects; and two, Foucauldian concepts of biopower as these may – or may not – be applicable to the human management of animal life.Individual chapters examine, in turn: the local politics of space on the Varanger peninsula, focusing particularly on links between the spatial management and the killing of reindeer; the practices and social relations of slaughter as it is conducted at the round-up corral; the social effects of the introduction of slaughterhouses, and of the regime of which they form a part; controversies surrounding specific slaughtering techniques and instruments, particularly the curved knife; and the politics of animal welfare discourse and practices in their application to reindeer herding. Finally, using the figure of animal sacrifice as a guiding trope, the concluding chapter attempts to situate some key aspects of the modernization of reindeer slaughter in relation to the operation of broader sacrificial economies that regulate the destruction of life at aggregate or populational levels. / Research Council of Norway

This dissertation is an ethnographic study about ecological displacement, affective encounters, the work of care, and human and animal subjectivities involved in rehabilitating endangered orangutans in Sarawak, Malaysia. Using participant-observation, interviews, archival research, and animal behavioral methods during seventeen months of fieldwork, this work exemplifies Donna Haraway's idea of 'zooethnography' by treating animals and humans as situated subjects. Specifically, I examine encounters between semi-wild orangutans, indigenous Sarawakian workers, Sarawakian Chinese and Malay middle-class managers of the semi-governmental corporation running the centers, and transnational professionals from the Global North who pay thousands of US dollars to volunteer their manual labor. I address the question, how do conflicting concepts of freedom and autonomy get produced at wildlife centers in which animals are restrained and managed for the purpose of an eventual freedom that is unobtainable? I argue that orangutan rehabilitation entails the production of affect between bodies, which in turn generates a global, postcolonial economy of human nostalgia. Despite assiduous efforts to train orangutans for a life of autonomy within the confines of forest reserves, I found that rehabilitant orangutans experience a permanently deferred independence. I offer the concept of 'arrested autonomy' as a way of understanding how subjects are forcibly made dependent while simultaneously regarded as potentially independent. This permanently deferred independence resembles the deferred promises and hopes of decolonization that have yet to materialize. / Anthropology

Critics of animal rights often deride the movement’s proponents for having a sentimental, juvenile misconception of what animals really are, an argument bolstered by the fact that few twenty-first-century Americans besides those engaged in the industries of animal exploitation have any prolonged contact with real animals other than their pets. Until the first decades of the twentieth century, however, American cities teemed with diverse animal residents and workers, and a rapidly increasing percentage of humans grew in their conviction that these animal neighbors should be extended considerations and rights. Shifting ideas about these animals’ roles within United States society were captured in a number of new bestselling literary genres centered around “realistic” depictions of animal characters. Because animals are often conceptualized as a “contrast class” to humanity—a fundamental “Other” by which humans establish what qualities make themselves distinct and (typically) superior—analyzing these texts and their circulation within nineteenth-century culture reveals how Americans understood authority and systems of governance, and in particular how they modeled an ideal American manhood nourished by animal bodies. What forms of exploitation and control were permissible in a man’s treatment of his animals often reflected other power dynamics within society, and so these texts also provide insight into issues of class, race, and gender. Although the historical trajectory of popular culture depictions of realistic animals shows a general increase in compassion, egalitarianism, and the extension of rights, the successful removal of much animal exploitation from visibility has allowed that exploitation to grow in spite of the increasing popular sentiment to the contrary. / English

Cette thèse, qui s’appuie sur plusieurs enquêtes ethnographiques chez les Halh de Mongolie et les Bouriates d’Aga, ainsi que sur des sources écrites en langues mongole, russe et occidentales, porte sur le pastoralisme nomade des peuples mongols. En étudiant la manière dont les éleveurs conçoivent l’agentivité de leurs animaux (chevaux, chameaux, bovins, moutons, chèvres et chiens) et se reposent sur cette dernière, elle montre que l’élevage pastoral, loin d’être réductible à un simple rapport de domination, est un système complexe composé d’interactions multiples entre humains et animaux, qui s’adaptent mutuellement pour faire communauté. À travers une abondante cartographie constituée à partir d’enregistrements GPS, l’analyse des aspects spatiaux de la cohabitation met au jour l’importance de la relation triadique homme-animal-environnement qui participe du maintien de la communauté. Cette communauté multispécifique engage des moyens de communication qui mobilisent les cinq sens et qui révèlent les capacités cognitives des animaux. Les éleveurs exploitent celles-ci dans les situations de coopération homme-animal, où le rôle joué par les animaux est différencié selon leurs caractéristiques individuelles. Malgré les différences environnementales, socio-économiques et politiques des deux terrains d’enquête, la perspective comparative met en lumière des éléments d’un continuum mongol. Les assemblages et équilibres fins à l’œuvre dans les relations interspécifiques révèlent la grande autonomie des animaux, dont les éleveurs attendent qu’ils jouent un rôle actif dans les tâches pastorales. / This thesis, based on several ethnographic surveys among Halh Mongols and Aga Buryats (Russia), as well as written sources in Mongolian, Russian and Western languages, addresses the nomadic pastoralism among the Mongols. By studying the way herders conceive the agency of their animals (horses, camel, cattle, sheep, goats and dogs) and rely on it, it is shown that animal husbandry, far from being reducible to a mere relation of domination, is a complex system made of multiple interactions between humans and animals, who mutually adapt to each other to build community. Through an abundant cartography based on GPS records, the analysis of the spatial features of cohabitation brings to light the importance of the triadic human-animal-environment relation which contributes to maintaining the community. This multispecies community engages means of communication which mobilize the five senses and reveal the animals’ cognitive capacities. Herders build on those in situation of human-animal cooperation, in which the role played by the animals is differentiated depending on their individual characteristics. Despite the environmental, socio-economic and political differences between the two fields, the comparative perspective highlights elements of a Mongol continuum. The assemblages and delicate balances prevailing in the interspecific relations reveal the large autonomy of animals, which are expected by herders to play an active role in pastoral tasks.

Cette thèse, qui s’appuie sur plusieurs enquêtes ethnographiques chez les Halh de Mongolie et les Bouriates d’Aga, ainsi que sur des sources écrites en langues mongole, russe et occidentales, porte sur le pastoralisme nomade des peuples mongols. En étudiant la manière dont les éleveurs conçoivent l’agentivité de leurs animaux (chevaux, chameaux, bovins, moutons, chèvres et chiens) et se reposent sur cette dernière, elle montre que l’élevage pastoral, loin d’être réductible à un simple rapport de domination, est un système complexe composé d’interactions multiples entre humains et animaux, qui s’adaptent mutuellement pour faire communauté. À travers une abondante cartographie constituée à partir d’enregistrements GPS, l’analyse des aspects spatiaux de la cohabitation met au jour l’importance de la relation triadique homme-animal-environnement qui participe du maintien de la communauté. Cette communauté multispécifique engage des moyens de communication qui mobilisent les cinq sens et qui révèlent les capacités cognitives des animaux. Les éleveurs exploitent celles-ci dans les situations de coopération homme-animal, où le rôle joué par les animaux est différencié selon leurs caractéristiques individuelles. Malgré les différences environnementales, socio-économiques et politiques des deux terrains d’enquête, la perspective comparative met en lumière des éléments d’un continuum mongol. Les assemblages et équilibres fins à l’œuvre dans les relations interspécifiques révèlent la grande autonomie des animaux, dont les éleveurs attendent qu’ils jouent un rôle actif dans les tâches pastorales. / This thesis, based on several ethnographic surveys among Halh Mongols and Aga Buryats (Russia), as well as written sources in Mongolian, Russian and Western languages, addresses the nomadic pastoralism among the Mongols. By studying the way herders conceive the agency of their animals (horses, camel, cattle, sheep, goats and dogs) and rely on it, it is shown that animal husbandry, far from being reducible to a mere relation of domination, is a complex system made of multiple interactions between humans and animals, who mutually adapt to each other to build community. Through an abundant cartography based on GPS records, the analysis of the spatial features of cohabitation brings to light the importance of the triadic human-animal-environment relation which contributes to maintaining the community. This multispecies community engages means of communication which mobilize the five senses and reveal the animals’ cognitive capacities. Herders build on those in situation of human-animal cooperation, in which the role played by the animals is differentiated depending on their individual characteristics. Despite the environmental, socio-economic and political differences between the two fields, the comparative perspective highlights elements of a Mongol continuum. The assemblages and delicate balances prevailing in the interspecific relations reveal the large autonomy of animals, which are expected by herders to play an active role in pastoral tasks.

The cave Stora Förvar, excavated in the end of the 19th century, yielded a vast archaeological assemblage, providing great insight into the stone-age occupation of Stora Karlsö, an island a few kilometers off the west coast of Gotland. The bones of around ten humans dating to the Mesolithic have previously been identified among the four tons of faunal remains recovered from the cave. The human bone material featured cut-marks and split tubular bones. This, along with the apparent mixing of human- and animal bones in the cave, was interpreted as signs of anthropophagy. Later researchers have tentatively proposed that the individuals represented in the bone material might have been shamans, deviants, human sacrifices or low-status individuals. In the author’s opinion, this assertion is based on the dichotomies nature/culture and profane/sacred which produce a separation between the human bones and the animal bones. It is shown that defleshing and disarticulation were widespread practices during the Mesolithic, which could explain the marks found on the bones from Stora Förvar. Similarly, the mixing of human- and animal remains is a common feature of many Mesolithic sites across Europe. Employing a theoretical framework inspired by posthumanism and the ‘ontological turn’, the author argues that the assemblage should be understood through an alternative ontological premise where human and animal, hunter and prey, were not regarded as fundamentally different.

Cette thèse, qui s’appuie sur plusieurs enquêtes ethnographiques chez les Halh de Mongolie et les Bouriates d’Aga, ainsi que sur des sources écrites en langues mongole, russe et occidentales, porte sur le pastoralisme nomade des peuples mongols. En étudiant la manière dont les éleveurs conçoivent l’agentivité de leurs animaux (chevaux, chameaux, bovins, moutons, chèvres et chiens) et se reposent sur cette dernière, elle montre que l’élevage pastoral, loin d’être réductible à un simple rapport de domination, est un système complexe composé d’interactions multiples entre humains et animaux, qui s’adaptent mutuellement pour faire communauté. À travers une abondante cartographie constituée à partir d’enregistrements GPS, l’analyse des aspects spatiaux de la cohabitation met au jour l’importance de la relation triadique homme-animal-environnement qui participe du maintien de la communauté. Cette communauté multispécifique engage des moyens de communication qui mobilisent les cinq sens et qui révèlent les capacités cognitives des animaux. Les éleveurs exploitent celles-ci dans les situations de coopération homme-animal, où le rôle joué par les animaux est différencié selon leurs caractéristiques individuelles. Malgré les différences environnementales, socio-économiques et politiques des deux terrains d’enquête, la perspective comparative met en lumière des éléments d’un continuum mongol. Les assemblages et équilibres fins à l’œuvre dans les relations interspécifiques révèlent la grande autonomie des animaux, dont les éleveurs attendent qu’ils jouent un rôle actif dans les tâches pastorales. / This thesis, based on several ethnographic surveys among Halh Mongols and Aga Buryats (Russia), as well as written sources in Mongolian, Russian and Western languages, addresses the nomadic pastoralism among the Mongols. By studying the way herders conceive the agency of their animals (horses, camel, cattle, sheep, goats and dogs) and rely on it, it is shown that animal husbandry, far from being reducible to a mere relation of domination, is a complex system made of multiple interactions between humans and animals, who mutually adapt to each other to build community. Through an abundant cartography based on GPS records, the analysis of the spatial features of cohabitation brings to light the importance of the triadic human-animal-environment relation which contributes to maintaining the community. This multispecies community engages means of communication which mobilize the five senses and reveal the animals’ cognitive capacities. Herders build on those in situation of human-animal cooperation, in which the role played by the animals is differentiated depending on their individual characteristics. Despite the environmental, socio-economic and political differences between the two fields, the comparative perspective highlights elements of a Mongol continuum. The assemblages and delicate balances prevailing in the interspecific relations reveal the large autonomy of animals, which are expected by herders to play an active role in pastoral tasks.

The purpose of this study was to examine how a few travellers described animal agency in travelogues from the 17th century, printed in Swedish language. Because the aim of this paper was to study animal agency, the posthumanist perspective was chosen to analyse how the travellers both objectified animals and described certain animals to be able to express free agency. Furthermore, the study also examines how the travellers interpreted the animal’s free agency. First, the results show that animals were objectified in situations where animals functioned as economic resources, which also has been shown in previous research. Animals were objectified as tools, food, means of transportation and commodities. Second, the study shows that larger predators, the chameleon, the elephant and larger apes, were described to be able to express free agency. The larger predators exercised agency outside human living quarters and was interpreted negatively because of the danger they posed. This has also been shown in previous research. Third, and most important, the results indicate that humans didn’t view all animals the same. The travellers seem to have thought that certain animal individuals in certain situations could express free agency. For example, specific crocodiles were described to be able to choose whether to attack humans or not. They could also play with each other, which indicates that the author thought that the specific crocodile had emotions. Moreover, the elephant was described to be able to make its own decisions and only lacked the human ability to speak. In addition, the larger apes were deemed to be able to comprehend abstract concepts and act on conscious intention, like the elephant. Also, although the apes didn’t speak, they were believed to be able to. This shows that the travellers thought that specific animals could express free agency in given situations and had many so-called human abilities.

I syfte att undersöka om, och i så fall hur, förskollärare arbetar med djuretik som en värderingsfråga undersöks (1) förskollärares tolkning av läroplanens skrivning om ”respekt för allt levande”, (2) hur förskollärare arbetar med värderingsfrågan djuretik och (3) vilken hänsyn de tar till läroplanens krav på saklighet och allsidighet i detta arbete. Empirin bygger på kvalitativa intervjuer med sex förskollärare varav 3 är vegetarianer. Analysen baseras på poststrukturalistisk teori och teori om den dolda läroplanen. Informanterna anger att de arbetar med djuretik i ringa omfattning men visar också att förskollärarna förmedlar omedvetna budskap om djuretik. Hur dessa förskollärare arbetar med djuretik kännetecknas av en relativt stor heterogenitet som delvis är beroende av de intervjuades kostval. Mot bakgrund av att lärarna i denna studie tolkar in djur i läroplanens direktiv om att arbeta för att barn utvecklar ”respekt för allt levande”, dras en slutsats att den lärare som vill arbeta för att barn ska utveckla respekt för djur kan hänvisa till denna skrivning för att rättfärdiga sitt arbete. / In order to examine whether and, if so, how preschool teachers work with animal ethics, I investigate (1) preschool teachers' interpretation of the the formulation of the Swedish curriculum about "respect for all living things", (2) how preschool teachers work with issues of animal ethics, and (3) which consideration they give in this work to the curriculum requirements of objectivity and comprehensiveness. The empirical data is based on qualitative interviews with six pre-school teachers whereof three are vegetarians. The analysis is based on poststructuralist theory and theory of the hidden curriculum. The informants tell that they are working with animal ethics to a small extent. However, the teachers do also mediate unconscious messages about animal ethics. How these preschool teachers work with animal ethics is characterized by a relatively high heterogeneity that partly depends on the food choice of the interviewees. Given that the teachers in this study do include the animals when they interpret the curriculum directives on working to ensure that children develop "respect for all living things", I conclude that the teachers who want to work for children to develop respect for animals may refer to this curriculum wording to justify their work.

The background of the study is that humans’ relationship to the nature and animals is not universal and is based on critical archeology and reflexive thinking. Previous researchers have interpreted the animals in graves as food offerings or a communication meal, where the horse is highlighted as a prominent symbol of power, prosperity, alliances, and aristocracy. Researchers have also compared animal style ornaments with Icelandic Sagas, and they connect humans and animals to transformation, metamorphoses, and hybridity. The interpretations in this context are based on the animals´ contemporary function and modern views. By studying the materials more closely, it turned out that the bones of humans and animals have been mixed in the graves. In the animal style ornamentation, there are often mixtures between humans and animals, and so also in the Icelandic Sagas. This indicates that the ancient humans intended to recreate mixtures between humans and animals in the materials. The study also links to the anthropological terms totenism and animism, to show that humans’ relationship to animals differs, and that it is not always the same as the modern view.