Grizzly Man

  Order Description       After Treadwell’s death, prolific film director Werner Herzog took interest Treadwell’s story and began to put the pieces together. Through Treadwell’s own film footage and interviews with people who knew him best, we get to know a man who struggled with his past and claimed to find his calling amongst Alaska’s wildest bears. As Treadwell immerses himself in their daily lives, the bears accepted his presence, followed him, slept near his tent and permitted him to enter their space. He gave them names and sang to them. Though Treadwell was known for being a brave, passionate man, Herzog found him to be a disturbed individual who had a skewed perspective of nature and carried a death wish till the end of his life. Grizzly Man is a fascinating and tragic story with breathtaking footage of Alaska’s primordial wilderness that presents a unique look into the nature of humans. In a thoughtful, well-written essay, I challenge you to consider the following prompt: In Grizzly Man, Werner Herzog crafts an argument about who Timothy Treadwell was and why he lived the way he did. We should all strive to be emphatic, even towards people we don’t understand. People are quick to criticize Timothy Treadwell’s passionate efforts without knowing anything about his internal battle or understanding the depth of his conviction. With this in mind, first identify Herzog’s argument and determine how effective his argument is based on the evidence he uses. Second, explain why or why not Timothy Treadwell deserves our empathy. Carefully consider whether even flawed human beings can teach us important lessons. Finally, offer a rich discussion of your own personal convictions. What do you feel particularly convicted about? Why? Have you experienced criticism for your beliefs? Explain in detail.