Have you ever seen a smiling cockroach... or for the matter of fact an irritated, or angry or happy or sad or any kind of emotional cockroach. Have you ever bothered to figure out? I wonder if they exhibit any such emotions.. why this questions popped up because I was just looking at the way, everyone at my home takes extreme pleasure in crushing this poor insects under the chappals, and whatsoever that they find, not that I am a big cockroach fan and that I would love to keep them as pets, I dont like them that much because they are ugly, especially their colour, I wish that they were more colourful or atleast have some other colour other that stupid orage'ish brown. But I was wondering if cockroaches instead of running around here and there like idiots, could do something with their antennas to amuse people, I guess then people would not be so harsh to them. Imagine as soon as we switched on the light they would, instead of running around, would do something cute, as if saying "Why did you switch on light, we dont like it", by moving their antenna in some way or walking in someother manner, or doing something different rather than running away blindly. I guess they could stir our emotions too, and then we would not be shovering chappals over them.
I was just wondering, why we feel sorry when we see dogs getting killed and chickens and goats getting killed for food, I guess that is only because they have learnt to do some actions which sort of stir our emotions and we start feeling sorry for them. Like dog wagging their tails and goats with always that so called sorry looking and innocent face. But most of times when we see the cockroach have only one thread running in our head, find something before it vanishes and satakk... missed... another satakkk.., gone and then we feel happy and think that we have accomplished something.
Hold on... please dont label me as cockroach activist. Dont start forming images that when you come to my home you will see cockroaches sitting and having a merry time on my bed and in my bookshelf. It is not like that. Whenever I see one of them, depeding on my mood and availability of appropriate weapon, I too do also do the same. And as such I am now staying in a newly constructed house which as of yet remains as one of the unconquered territory by these species.
But it is just that yesterday, at a friend's place, the death of one of this fellows with a chappal triggered this chain of thoughts.
Anyways, have a good week ahead :D
I was just wondering, why we feel sorry when we see dogs getting killed and chickens and goats getting killed for food, I guess that is only because they have learnt to do some actions which sort of stir our emotions and we start feeling sorry for them. Like dog wagging their tails and goats with always that so called sorry looking and innocent face. But most of times when we see the cockroach have only one thread running in our head, find something before it vanishes and satakk... missed... another satakkk.., gone and then we feel happy and think that we have accomplished something.
Hold on... please dont label me as cockroach activist. Dont start forming images that when you come to my home you will see cockroaches sitting and having a merry time on my bed and in my bookshelf. It is not like that. Whenever I see one of them, depeding on my mood and availability of appropriate weapon, I too do also do the same. And as such I am now staying in a newly constructed house which as of yet remains as one of the unconquered territory by these species.
But it is just that yesterday, at a friend's place, the death of one of this fellows with a chappal triggered this chain of thoughts.
Anyways, have a good week ahead :D
11 comments:
Cockroaches trigger a very very ancient fear/anger response I think - just as snakes do. Why? Because cockroaches carry diseases and are dangerous to us.
Humans identify with other animals through emotions, you're certainly right on that score. Insects are typically not kept as pets because we can't really empathize with them.
Birds and mammals on the other hand show emotions and expressions which we are able to identify with and therefore empathize with.
For an interesting example of what humans identify as 'ourself' read Phantoms in the Brain :-)...
May you come across much less cockroaches in the future!
very interesting writeup
A rather cute - if I may say so - post! :D
I don't know why you hate the colour so much. I think it's rather nice! :)
You have a good, cockroach-free weekend!
Dude, you need a break and your house need a cleanup act. :)
@prasanna... Yups will try to get hold of that book and read it.
@ashish ... Thanks.
@ubiquitous... Thanks.. I hate that colour, I would rather wish cockroaches be black, grayish, or two or three colours.
@prits.... Am changing the house next month.. :D
Golu bhai,
I very much like the idea of starting a website devoted to one's pet cockroaches. In fact, I'm going to drop out of grad school and start working towards this roach dream!
hmmm, quite a thought over some unconquered territories :)
yes but it still doesnt make me think I can handle them with more sympathy. :D i hate all creepy crawlies except fireflies.
such a cute post..I was cracking with laughter...loved it...is cockroach your pal? i think so...!
:)
Pushpa
ok...i used to be petrified of roaches. i tried naming them to get over the fear but in vain...i got more n more scared until i cudnt even stand dead ones...not, i have gotten over that fear thanks to a rather terrifying exercise i was forced to undergo...but all dat apart...dont follow this thought much. who knows, u might start gifting roaches to ppl on their birthdays!
Jhakas..
I too hav the same feelings.
If u observe dem closely, they are cute,wagging der antenas. u rightly said that if they act smart, the saatakk.. factor will start fading.
same is the condition of the small black and red ants.
But......
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