Munoz 1

Monique Munoz
English 114A
Prof. Jackie
3 November, 2014
The Dark Side of Entertainment
Many people go to Sea World for a fun trip, but what they dont know is the history
behind Sea World. Sea World started getting accused of animal abuse after people watched the
documentary Blackfish that was directed by Gabriela Cowpethwaite which came out January
2013. The documentary shows footage of the orcas along with their trainers. It also shows how
they first started Sea World and Sea Land and how they captured their first killer whales. This
emotional documentary will have you crying by the end of the film. The documentary
Blackfish basically shows how they took care of their whales in very inhumane ways and how
Sea World tries to hide things from the rest of the world so they wont receive a bad name. The
director is trying to show how terrible Sea World really is and that they shouldnt keep orcas in
captivity because they could become aggressive over time.
In the film many former trainers talk about what it was like when they first got the killer
whales. One former trainer stated that they would store the orcas in a module that was twenty
feet across and thirty feet deep in the night for two-thirds of their life. The module was twenty by
thirty feet and the lights were always turned off. He also stated that they would deprive the orcas
from food so they would swim into the module and obey their rules.
Not only would they deprive them from food, they would also use techniques that
involved cruel punishment. Steve Huxter who is the former director of Sea Land said that they
would team a trained orca with Tilikum and ask them both to do something. If Tilikum didnt do

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it then both orcas wouldnt get fed. This frustrated the other orca so Tilikum would often end up
with teeth marks all over his body because of the other frustrated orca. Tilikum would continue
to get beaten by these whales along with being deprived from food which is wrong. Another
former trainer John Jett stated that Tilikum would be isolated so the females wont hurt him.
The documentary Blackfish is trying to show how being locked up in a big pool and
getting treated poorly can make orcas frustrated and tired of being in a big tub. Even though
there have been countless deaths and injuries at both Sea World and Sea Land, Sea World always
tries to cover it up and claim it was an accident. Sea World still kept Tilikum in captivity
knowing how dangerous and enraged he was. On July 7, 1999 Daniel P. Dukes was found dead
in the pool of Sea World. Tilikum striped him and bit off his genitals. A trainer Dawn Brancheu
also got killed in 2010 at the Sea World of Orlando. There have been over seventy incidents at
Sea World and they always try to cover them and blame it on the trainers.
Sea World tries to cover many things up from the general public. In the documentary
Blackfish it shows footage of how some tour guides tell people that orcas tend to live for
twenty years when in reality they actually live as long as a human. They are trying to make it
seem like they live longer when they are in captivity with them when in reality they are the ones
that are putting them in danger. They also claimed that twenty five percent of killer whales have
a flap on their fin which is false. This statement is wrong because in reality only one percent of
whales have it in the world. Orcas have never been reported to harm anyone out in the wild. The
only place where they harm people is when they are in captivity. You cannot blame someone or
an animal to go crazy from being locked up their whole life in terrible conditions.

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Word Cited Page

Blackfish. Dir. Gabriela Cowpethwaire. Perf. John Hargore, Samantha Berg, Mark Simmons,
Kim Ashdown, Dean Gomersall. Magnolia Pictures, 2013. DVD.