Practicum: Turning Unethical Animal Traditions Ethical
Greetings and salivation! I fucked up again! Oh well, Hi everyone! It is your favourite alien Limax once more, Vivian! Bringing yet another blogpost practicum to you. Anne and I have done this jointly together. It was a combined effort but Anne typed probably most. Unlike other times we will be using (Both:) when it is something we worked on together.
Supported by Tshutsi Cogni-Chip Manufacturing Company, your source for good public information. TCCMC: trust knowledge.
Tshutsi Language
One thing to pay attention to throughout this entire blogpost is that for names, we use their internal words (endonyms) a lot in combination with ones translated into English (exonyms). Tshutsi language is heavily prefix focused and stack them happily in front of a word to change meaning. Think like the English affixes un-, dis-, etc. An important one to pay attention to in this article is ke-, which is plural. For example, Tshutsi = one Tshutsi, Ketshutsi = more than one Tshutsi.
Real World Basis: Bullfighting
(Vivian:) Bullfighting is where a human (Matador) battles against a bull in an arena. The matador uses tricks such as motions of the cape (it is not the color that attracts them, and no, bulls are not colorblind) along with tools such as barbed sticks in order to agitate the bull and get them to attack. It ends with the bull being killed.
(Anne:) Bullfighting as a sport has some good and mostly bad, but Vivian and I were interested in seeing if we could take the good and eliminate the bad. First, though, we had to identify exactly what it was that we liked and didn’t like about it. After all, if you look at Vivian’s famous rules of worldbuilding, this follows the 8th rule: know the reason why you want that cog. In order to include the cog of some sort of animal fighting in our world, we need to know what it is we actually want to accomplish. So let’s look at bullfighting and get that answer!
The Good: Vivian’s love
(Vivian:) Let me tell you a little story from when I was a wee little Limax in me papa’s lap. Alright, we weren’t here, and I was too big for his sodding lap. We were in Spain after a friend of his offered us a free vacation without having to pay anything but food and tickets. Mallorca is a beautiful island, and I recommend going there. Lovely island. Anyway, we were there, and there was this TV with Spanish channels. I know, amazing, Spain has Spanish channels. For all the Americans, trust me, I was still in Europe.
My dad’s friend eventually turned on one day a live broadcast of a bullfight with a matador and the whole shebang! It captured my mind, and it just looked amazing! Everything, the matador’s work of the bull, dealing with a fierce animal that could suddenly decide to stomp their head into smithereens. I fell in love with it and loved watching it. The man vs animal fight. The grace of dealing with a very angry animal out to get them and such.
(Anne:) These are such good things to admire! See why we want to keep this in our own sport?
(Vivian:) Of course, being a kid, I was blind to the bad sides of it. Once I learned those, my opinion shifted to bullfighting in general. The parts that I loved, however, have remained to this day even if I don’t watch so I do not support animal cruelty.
The Bad: Anne’s hate
(Anne:) My initial impression was quite different. I liked the outfits and when I saw it in cartoons, it was just a guy waving a red cloth that the bull charged at. There was nothing else to it, so I thought it was just a funny thing Spanish people did. When I saw a video of an actual bullfight, I was shocked. There was so much blood! The matadors don’t wave red clothes around and jump out of the way with goofy smiles like in the cartoons. They actually pierce the bull with spears in order to enrage it, basically torturing it until they finally kill it. I was appalled. This is the part of bullfighting that Vivian and I wanted to get rid of: the unconscionable torture, and the needless death.
(Vivian:) A historical note: these shows were used for the “circus” element in “bread and circus,” but the bull was then also cut up and given to poor families often, and thus also the “bread”part. I still do not support it, but older people before 1900 I can forgive for liking it. Animal torture is not okay, not even if I am going to eat them… anyone got a burger?
What We Want
That is what WWW stands for in any web address!
Jokes aside, what we wanted was, well, what I loved. Anne even agrees those are some fantastic aspects of it. Namely:
Man vs Animal
The unpredictability of an animal
The majesty of the play by the matador
These were the things we wanted, and from there, we formed everything, including the animal itself.
Sakirakani
(Anne:) Our planned ethical version of bullfighting centers around the Sakirakani, an intelligent, fierce, beetle-like creature as big as a bull. You’ll find out all about their appearance and biology in a second, but let me first mention their role in Tshutsi society.
Societal Role
The Sakirakani holds a privileged place in the hearts and minds of the Tshutsi people. Belusakirakani (the fight itself) is a time-honored tradition and held in high regard as the national sport. Because of the respect they have for Kesakirakani (plural of Sakirakani as you may recall), training is strictly regulated to reduce possible harm, but there are several professional leagues and major competitions.
As a result, the Sakirakani is the national creature of Tshutsi society, and people from all over known space watch the fights. Many even travel to the system of Lotshutsi and especially the capital planet, Tetshutsi, to train and join the fights. The Tshutsi welcome them with some skepticism, but they do allow it. Overall, the Sakirakani are a major point of pride for the Tshutsi people, something to keep in mind as we go!
Biology
(Both:) Kesakirakani have a sex ratio of about 50:50 male/female, and about half end up going into fighting, spread evenly across sexes. Because both males and females have very similar body types, there is no significant distinction in fighting or betting other than a note in their description. Kesakirakani are raised and trained to give fights their all, but during their training and breeding, uninterested Kesakirakani are left alone and never forced to fight after the initial testing.
When attempting to catch wild Kesakirakani, a dangerous task, it’s even more dangerous to attempt to sex the animals since you have to get extremely close. In one memorable incident that trainees are often told, an injured catcher said to his partner, “Tshinita, if I die soon, let these be my final words: she’s not a female, he’s too hung for it.” He did not survive the encounter.
This is a loose model of a Sakirakani. One key difference is that there is no distinction between the head (cephalo) and thorax, so it’s all one body part (Cephalothorax). When they’re happy or in a good mood, they sound like birds chirping. However, when they’re in a fight, they screech in a similar manner to this:
When breeding Kesakirakani, one might think that the strongest ones are the most desirable, but the current trend is actually to breed for intelligence. As Vivian says, “What is more interesting, a bigger one running at the Matshudo stupidly? Or a smaller one that tries to fuck with them and outsmart them and win?” So while in the past the goal was physical strength, nowadays it’s cunning and the ability to plan that determine which beetles are the most desirable.
Belusakirakani (Beetlefighting)
Belusakirakani, translated as “Sakirakani fighting” and also known as “Belusaki,” “Beetlefighting,” or “Are you stark raving mad?”, is our version of ethical bullfighting.
The Fight
In beetlefighting, a matshudo, similar to a matador, faces off against a Sakirakani “beetle.” They have a highly nerfed nentro-prod (Anne: this is a prod device that uses nentro energy that you might understand as similar to an electric shock without the physical harm electricity can do) that feels to the Kesakirakani like a pinch that lasts about 30 seconds and highly annoys them, causing them to charge at the Tshutsi. It’s a show of skill and majesty, but there is a risk of injury or death to the matshudo. Victory occurs when the matshudo hits a spot on the center cephalothorax where the nerves are sufficiently close to the surface that the beetle will be temporarily paralyzed but not injured other than another annoying shock.
In the case that the matshudo chicken out, there are fosutshutsi (loosely similar to rodeo clowns) ready to jump in and distract the Sakirakani while they make their ignominious retreat. If the beetle for any reason decides they want to retreat, there is a clearly marked circle to one side of the arena that they can easily see. If they go to that spot and flop on their side for a predetermined length of time, the fight is over. Matshudo are not allowed to prod the Sakirakani while they’re in that circle, so they also use it for temporary recovery during a fight if they need a break but don’t want to end it completely. If for any reason a matshudo crosses the line in attacking the Sakirakani, the fosutshutsi will run out to pin them, offering protection to both sides of the fight. This is more often the case with foreign matadors who weren’t raised in the same culture of respect.
At the end of the fight, if the Sakirakani loses, the announcer says, “Into the pit the beetle goes!” The floor opens with spikes below, but there’s a faint glimmer to them because they’re actually holographic. The beetle drops down onto pillows and the trapdoor closes, then the beetle is surrounded by scents and colors that reassure it that the fight is over and good times are coming now. After they’re allowed to calm down and recover in this small, quiet area, they’re greeted outside with delicious food and brought back to their homes. The Kesakirakani are given any care needed and allowed to rest until they signal their readiness to return, as they have enough intelligence to be willing participants, since they enjoy the thrill and the temporary stress gets their adrenaline going. This clear distinction between the fighting arena where they fight and their home where they’re safe and comfortable allows them to feel confident and be much happier since they’re not always on edge.
Historical Roots
Belusakirakani has been a sport for a very long time, but at first, the Tshutsi didn’t fully understand the creature’s intelligence and saw them as mere animals. The fights were based on strength, not cunning, and death for the matshudo often was the result to the point where it was expected that if a matshudo lost, they were forfeiting their life. In their early history this was exactly what happened. The Kesakirakani did kill the Kematshudo in self defense and tried to get away. However as the tradition continued, it went from capturing beetles to fight to breeding them, at which they started forming bonds with people. A mysterious thing started to be noticed by the Ketshutsi: many Kesakirakani stopped killing when it was clear the battle was over. They remained aggressive toward those that tried to attack it, but not their trainer or breeder. This was the start of their true domestication and formation of a different bond between the two species.
Based on this unwillingness to kill, the Tshutsi realized that they actually were quite intelligent. As they adopted the Kesakirakani and domestication began, they learned that it was possible to form close bonds with them and shifted their breeding strategies away from sheer strength. As the beetles showed more and more intelligence and cunning, the fights became more challenging and, as a result, more fun to watch. By the time the Kesakirakani could be considered fully domesticated, the Tshutsi around them had also adapted to them and changed in their perceptions and relationships. They’ve even been used to pull carriages for the wealthy thanks to their ability to walk in unison with little chirps to keep on pace. No one is quite certain why they do the unison pacing as they were never trained to do so.
Strategy
Due to the Kesakirakani’s intelligence and the limited number of matshudo, it’s common for the same pair to match up. The two of them remember their previous fights, so what will they do now? That adds a level of fun to the fights, as spectators can bet based on previous matchups in addition to the matador’s or beetle’s personal achievements.
For the matches, it’s common for Kematshudo to study their opponents and watch previous fights they’ve been in to learn their typical strategies. They might have their personal experiences, but it helps to see how other Kematshudo approach the fight and how the Sakirakani reacts to those approaches. For the beetles, on the other hand, they aren’t intelligent enough to watch videos and mentally match the image to the people that they’ve faced. However, they are able to watch holographic projections of fights and understand what’s happening. So while they can’t understand individuals until they’re actually in the fight and see and smell them, many Kesakirakani handlers will show their beetles other fights to try to teach them other strategies. Some are capable of learning, some aren’t, but it’s a common strategy. It is believed that the beetle brain has issues dealing with holograms as opposed to it being an intelligence issue as they are quick learners from observing each other in real life.
Another strategy based on intelligence that Sakirakani have adopted relates to the crowd. They’re intelligent enough to know their names and other key words in the same way a dog would, and most also figure out that the crowd cheers for whoever they support, them or the Matshudo. Many also learn that if they can get the crowd on their side, cheering for their good moves, the fights go better for them. They commonly use screeching and elaborate moves to earn the crowd’s approval. Each beetle has their own unique strategy for this, including signature moves and special screeching patterns. For a Matshudo, if the crowd begins to fully support the Sakirakani, they’ve already lost the crowd’s goodwill, and it’s often better to fold and give the beetle their deserved victory. This psychological battle can be just as important as the physical one.
Economy
How is money made here? Well, clearly selling the rights to sell the broadcast of battles. The betting of the outcomes. Gambling is legal for the Tshutsi under fair conditions. The live audience and even semi-live, using holograms, all contribute to the economy of this system. A well known arena along with famous Sakirakani and Matshudo can bring in a lot of money from the audience, meaning companies and even smaller private entities can make a lot of money.
It is well known that a lot of bigger names, whether Sakirakani or Matshudo, do not work for big companies but small groups that travel around doing the fights. Once they reach a certain level of fame, it becomes more cost efficient to form an independent company or join a small one, since they’ll keep a higher percentage from the amount they receive from the arrangers of the fights. It gives them leverage toward the big companies as they have the big names desired by audiences. There is also generally a prize included in each battle if the Matshudo wins that is given by companies wanting advertisement. It is a common practice that if the Sakirakani wins, the reward is either given away to charity or transferred to the next contestant.
Then there are the farms (which will come up a bit later) that become tourist attractions, especially those with famous Kesakirakani. People flock to see the beetles, which are very popular among children. Foreign visitors to the planet also add these farms to their itinerary so they can see such an important part of Tshutsi culture.
Famous Incidents
One Matshudo, Vjatshilu, had been ranked at the top for several years, as has one Sakirakani, Makasi, and they face each other enough that they know each other. Their fights are more like a fight between good friends as they know each other so well, but the outcome is never determined. When the Sakirakani sees Vjatshilu in the arena, they are delighted to see him and know they’re in for a fun fight.
The famous incident occurred during a fight when Makasi managed to throw the Matshudo far into the air, and he hit the ground hard. The beetle turned around to face Vjatshilu for more, but upon seeing him not moving, they ran over, seemingly worried, then ran to the circle and flopped over to end the fight so that others could check in on Vjatshilu. He was fine in the end, just minor injuries and a concussion. After Vjatshilu recovered, he visited the Sakirakani outside of the fights to reassure them. Makasi looked happier than a fluff upon seeing Vjatshilu doing well.
In an interview later in life after retiring from fighting, Vjatshilu reflected back on his fighting days and the Sakirakani that was the bane of his existence:
That Sakirakani was out to wreck me. Makasi was his name. Real bastard that Sakira, but I'd trust him more than any Tshutsi opponent. When shit got too real, at least Makasi rolled over wanting help for me.
He mourned Makasi’s death, and he requested (and received) the exoskeleton to remember his old enemy and unexpected friend.
How is it Ethical?
(Vivian:) Let me give it in bulletin form if you cannot see it already and then we’ll break it down
They are not forced against their will
They are free to give up anytime they want
They are rewarded for their performance but retain the ability to quit
They are not punished for quitting or not wanting to fight
They decide when they are ready to fight once more
The animal is not hurt
They are not killed at the end
They retire on their own volition
Retirement is not equal to death
(Anne:) Mistreatment of Kesakirakani is considered a criminal act
(Vivian:) Pick any which you want to start with my friend!
(Anne:) Let’s look at the relationship that Kesakirakani have with fighting, which you can see in the first few bullet points. These are intelligent creatures, maybe not at the level of you or me, but they have the intelligence to know what they want and the ability to indicate that to people trained to understand their cues.
(Vivian:) They clearly show social relationships which do take a great deal of intelligence to maintain and judge other beings by their actions.
(Anne:) That social intelligence is an important factor, since generally speaking, the goal is not a fight to the death. Kesakirakani generally view the Matshudo as competitors, not enemies. I mean, just look at the respect and friendship between Vjatshilu and Makasi! It’s clear that beetles are capable of forming relationships with their competitors and treating them as such, not as people to kill. If a Sakirakani seems to be targeting the Matshudo with lethal attacks or if they’re deemed too dangerous for some reason, they don’t face any penalty other than not being allowed to fight anymore. They get an early retirement and lots of love.
(Vivian:) No Sakirakani burgers for you!
(Anne:) That’s right! And if a Sakirakani doesn’t want to fight for any reason, whether permanently or just temporarily, it’s never forced. They fight on their terms, a distinct difference from bullfighting, where the bulls, though equally able to tell whether or not they want to fight even if they are slightly less intelligent and might have a harder time indicating their readiness, are forced into it regardless of anything they want. This was one element we wanted to change, and I think it’s a great change. Now, the creatures are choosing this, and they can stop at any point, again, whether that’s temporarily or permanently.
Why might they choose this? Well, they view it as a competitive game to some degree. The stakes aren’t life or death (though for the Matshudo it’s a little different!). Because of that, the Sakirakani can enjoy it. Plus, they’re rewarded for winning! How can you not like that? But a key thing is that they’re also not punished for losing. They’re not killed and their bodies distributed to the poor. Instead, they have an unpleasant shock and are briefly paralyzed, then land in a comforting bed that tells them that the fight is over, and they can return to their comfortable lives until they’re ready once more. I mean, people do stupid, crazy things to get an adrenaline rush all the time. People choose to fight each other all the time, in their own lives and in public sports. Kesakirakani have the same ability to choose to engage in behavior that gets their blood pumping and stokes their competitive natures.
(Vivian:) Which let’s be honest, has somewhat been bred for at a suitable level by the Tshutsi’s views, but even if it is bred, they are not unhealthy, dangerous to themselves or the likes, and retain their ability to choose.
And onto retirement! It means that the animal is clearly no longer showing interest in fighting or is deemed too injured or old for it to be fair to keep fighting. What happens then? OFF WITH THE CEPHALOTHORAX! No wait, we said that doesn’t happen! Because it doesn’t, you don’t show such disregard for the life of a creature you’ve worked with and have a bond with. The one exception is if they are so sick, wounded, or such that it's a mercy killing which is ENTIRELY different!
What happens when the noble Sakirakani is no longer ready for the game? They are transported away from where the battling ones are housed and taken to a “farm”–I am putting it in quotation marks because it is not quite a farm just close enough, IT IS NOT A HIDDEN PLOT TO KILL THEM! There they can live out their lives fed and well treated, at the expense of the company that had owned them for the battles. Or if they still want things to do, they might get lighter forms of jobs. Pulling carts and people around and the likes. In the end, they die like they lived regardless of what trajectory their life took, with dignity and care.
Profits have been made, entertainment given, and a life was made happy.
(Anne:) See? So much better than how animals in sports like this are treated. And because the beetles often earn so much fighting, it’s barely a dent in the bucket to take care of them like this. The publicity nightmare killing them would be also plays into it, naturally, but really they do it because it’s the right thing to do. Humane, and ethical. Exactly what we wanted. And in our case, if a kid wanted to see the “farm,” they could actually go! No hemming and hawing from parents who don’t want to admit what happened. Really, since fans might want to see them after their fighting days are over, they could still make a profit from visitors! But again, that’s secondary.
Summa Summarum
(Vivian:) As we can see here, we have turned what is a barbaric practice that is pure animal cruelty into an animal sport that is ethical and even way more interesting. The Sakirakani species is highly intelligent and understands quite a bit and can understand more if allowed to experience and learn. Keep in mind that despite this high intelligence, these beings are not forced into anything and allowed to live a form of life they chose. What we people enjoy and what they enjoy are fundamentally two different things that should apply to any different species.
By making them more intelligent, the game is more interesting, more unpredictable, and more everything I, and Anne, wanted, while also ensuring that neither of our ethical stances on animal treatments are violated. Sure, there are going to be some who will break laws and rules; people are gonna be assholes. But at least here we have a system where those are removed over time. Whack-a-mole, am I right? Anyway, a point is this greatly explored my Tshutsi species and their history and traditions by one simple thing being wanted. Bullfighting, but with a beetle, that is ethical. Any last words Annetron?
(Anne:) I certainly do have some! This started with a sport that I strongly oppose and ended with one that is fun and, importantly, consensual. Both sides agree to it and understand the terms, and those terms are maintained by force of law. As Vivian said, violators can be charged and removed. I think including an intelligent creature who can learn to use some advanced strategies like crowd control and also learn from past fights makes this much more interesting, and allowing those creatures a chance to opt out at any time provides a necessary ethical stopping point. Just like people choosing to engage in dangerous activities, the Kesakirakani know what they’re in for and enjoy it. And again, as Vivian said, this is a life they choose. People aren’t pressuring them in any way, and their needs are not the same as the needs of people.
Overall, this was an incredibly fun thing to develop. Vivian and I started just tossing ideas back and forth, then began writing, and this entire thing was essentially finished in a single afternoon, with a few additions and editing the next day. When you have a good idea about your world, it can be extremely fun, and that’s the type of thing you want to pursue in your worldbuilding and writing. Now there’s something fun and unique about the Tshutsi that will surely come up in a story written about them or where the characters visit their planet, and we can even start thinking of existing characters' relationships with this sport. It adds to the story enormously.
So my basic tip to you as writers and worldbuilders would be to explore interesting and obscure elements of your world, taking things you may not be entirely satisfied with (or may even hate) in real life and seeing how you can make it fit in a better, ethical way. Have fun!
(Vivian:) Ethics schmethics! Sound of Sakirakani herd marching in unison as they come for me AAHHHH!!!!
Do you have any topics you struggle with or that you would like to suggest for a future blogpost? We’re open to suggestions!
Copyright ©️ 2023 Vivian Sayan and Anne Winchell. Original ideas belong to the respective authors. Generic concepts such as bullfighting and its pros and cons are copyrighted under Creative Commons with attribution, and any derivatives must also be Creative Commons. However, almost all of the ideas in this post are unique, and specific ideas including everything about Belusakirakani, Matshudo, and Sakirakani, plus all language or exact phrasing, are individually copyrighted by the respective authors. Contact them for information on usage and questions if uncertain what falls under Creative Commons. We’re almost always happy to give permission. Please contact the authors through this website’s contact page.
