Today we visited the National Archeology Museum.  There were hundreds of taxidermy pieces from various categories of the animal kingdom. Relating back to class this morning, each animal has a place and occupies a space. Some animals are more meaningful to someone based on how it has interacted/been apart of one’s own environment. For example, Chelsea and I saw some insects that are normally around the football field of the high school we went to. We were able to connect those insects to our personal lives where as seeing some of those other insects was a totally new experience for us.

It was a bit sad seeing those animals in the museum. Especially, knowing that a lot of them were killed just to be exhibited. There were also plenty of baby animals too. Many scenarios went through my mind as to how these animals were obtained. In one of our classes, we even spoke about animal rights and this was brought up in the conversation.

One thing I also thought about was, how do these taxidermies represent Ireland and how is place significant when it comes to these things? The animals represent where they come from and also how they shape the people who view them. They shape the hunter, the taxidermist, the museum curator, and the viewer. The both belong and do not belong in the museum. I think it is up to the viewer to decide its place and how it affects the viewer as an individual. However, that does not diminish the animal rights and its natural place being its habitat.