On Penguin Family Values
As noted here and here, conservatives are claiming "March of the Penguins" as their kind of movie--a film that preaches proper values and won't be condemned by CAPalert.
How did “March of the Penguins” become a surprise hit? Perhaps because nothing beats the summer heat like a movie set in Antarctica. Perhaps it’s the majestic yet adorable emperor penguins and their fuzzy gray chicks to make moviegoers say “Awwwwwwww.” And yes, it has a powerful family-values message...but one based on reality, not partisan politics.
As it turns out, looking for a partner in Antarctica is similar to the U.S. dating scene. Male penguins are not unlike American metrosexuals. “They pout, they strut, and occasionally they will engage in some contact sports,” says narrator Morgan Freeman.
Although she isn't around when her baby hatches, the mother penguin is the kind of mom that human mothers can cheer on. As soon as the female lays an egg, she turns it over to the male, who'll guard it until it hatches. By this time, Mama Penguin has lost so much body weight that she's close to starvation. She'll also need to find food for the soon-to-be-hatched chick. We see the female penguins fighting hunger and brutal cold during a seventy-mile trek to the sea, dodging predators in the water.
Meanwhile, the fathers watch over their eggs, huddling together during Antarctica’s windiest, most brutal winter storms, taking turns standing in the center where it’s warmer. In their community, no penguin is an island—or an ice floe, as the case may be.
And when the mother returns, the father turns the chick over to her care and goes to find food himself. What parent—shuttling back and forth between the office and day care—wouldn’t identify with these intrepid birds?
“March of the Penguins” is full of unforgettable images of the joy and pain of raising a family. It shows parents gazing protectively at their offspring and the grief of a mother penguin whose chick doesn’t survive. The penguins look out for each other’s offspring, too; at one point, they stop the bereaved mother from stealing one of the chicks.
For the past ten years, politicians and pundits have tried to offer answers to this question: Does it take a village or a family? As “March of the Penguin” proves, it takes both. The mothers of our species constantly agonize about balancing work and family, but a mother penguin easily shares responsibility with her mate. And even when she’s seventy miles away, her baby is never far from her mind.
While the mother and father rarely spend any quality time together, the chick always has at least one parent there.
It seems that these birds, living at the bottom of the world, have figured out the real meaning of family values. Humans could learn something from them.
How did “March of the Penguins” become a surprise hit? Perhaps because nothing beats the summer heat like a movie set in Antarctica. Perhaps it’s the majestic yet adorable emperor penguins and their fuzzy gray chicks to make moviegoers say “Awwwwwwww.” And yes, it has a powerful family-values message...but one based on reality, not partisan politics.
As it turns out, looking for a partner in Antarctica is similar to the U.S. dating scene. Male penguins are not unlike American metrosexuals. “They pout, they strut, and occasionally they will engage in some contact sports,” says narrator Morgan Freeman.
Although she isn't around when her baby hatches, the mother penguin is the kind of mom that human mothers can cheer on. As soon as the female lays an egg, she turns it over to the male, who'll guard it until it hatches. By this time, Mama Penguin has lost so much body weight that she's close to starvation. She'll also need to find food for the soon-to-be-hatched chick. We see the female penguins fighting hunger and brutal cold during a seventy-mile trek to the sea, dodging predators in the water.
Meanwhile, the fathers watch over their eggs, huddling together during Antarctica’s windiest, most brutal winter storms, taking turns standing in the center where it’s warmer. In their community, no penguin is an island—or an ice floe, as the case may be.
And when the mother returns, the father turns the chick over to her care and goes to find food himself. What parent—shuttling back and forth between the office and day care—wouldn’t identify with these intrepid birds?
“March of the Penguins” is full of unforgettable images of the joy and pain of raising a family. It shows parents gazing protectively at their offspring and the grief of a mother penguin whose chick doesn’t survive. The penguins look out for each other’s offspring, too; at one point, they stop the bereaved mother from stealing one of the chicks.
For the past ten years, politicians and pundits have tried to offer answers to this question: Does it take a village or a family? As “March of the Penguin” proves, it takes both. The mothers of our species constantly agonize about balancing work and family, but a mother penguin easily shares responsibility with her mate. And even when she’s seventy miles away, her baby is never far from her mind.
While the mother and father rarely spend any quality time together, the chick always has at least one parent there.
It seems that these birds, living at the bottom of the world, have figured out the real meaning of family values. Humans could learn something from them.
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