intro for research essay

A captive, according to the Merriam Webster’s dictionary, is one who is “taken and held as or as if a prisoner of war.” The word that stands out most upon reading these words, is "prisoner."  According to the same source, a prisoner is one who is “deprived of liberty and kept under involuntary restraint, confinement, or custody.” Based on both of these explanations, one can conclude that living in captivity is sheer deprivation of free will.  This is used most often as a punishment for humans, for those who have committed a crime, fought behind enemy lines, or for some other wrongdoing.  If our own species considers this denial of freedom as one of the highest forms of suffering, why do we impose this on the seemingly innocent, our environment?  Did fellow mammals such as whales do something to deserve life imprisonment and forced labor?  

Since the first cetaceans were held in the 1860s, they have gone from autonomous symbols of creativity, intuition, strength, and good luck to mere instruments; instruments for entertainment, profit, scientific progress, and exploitation.  For thousands of whales, their purpose is no longer to fulfill their ecological niches in the wild, but to live for the benefit of a different species, for the fascination of humans.  Whales appear to have an everlasting smile on their faces, creating the illusion that they are always enjoying themselves.  However, a host of unnatural behaviors, along with their eerie cries and physical and mental deterioration that occurs in captivity strongly suggest otherwise.