  Short Stories
This week: Medieval Animal Trials Edited by: Shannon  
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Welcome to the Short Stories Newsletter. I am Shannon and I'm your editor this week.
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I recently re-read George Orwell's classic allegory Animal Farm, which led to thoughts of personification vs. anthropomorphism and eventually to the practice of trying animals for human crimes in a court of law. While the idea of passing human judgment on animals that were only following their animal natures may seem absurd to those of us living in the twenty-first century, the courts of several hundred years ago took such matters very seriously.
For six hundred years (12th-18th century), "Animal defendants appeared before both church and secular courts, and the offenses alleged against them ranged from murder to criminal damage. Human witnesses were often heard and in Ecclesiastical courts, they were routinely provided with lawyers (this was not the case in secular courts, but for most of the period concerned, neither were human defendants). If convicted, it was usual for an animal to be executed, or exiled. However, in 1750, a female donkey was acquitted of charges of bestiality due to witnesses to the animal's virtue and good behavior while her co-accused human was sentenced to death." 1
Animals were excommunicated, hanged, dismembered, and/or set afire. "But here’s the brutal irony of animal trials: In pulling even the lowliest bug into our justice system, we personify them, but then in brutalizing them for their supposed misdeeds, we lower ourselves to the brutality we would expect from wild beasts." 2 Many books and a multitude of articles have been written about the subject, but E.P. Evans' The Criminal Prosecution and Capital Punishment of Animals, published in 1906, is one of the most extensive and in-depth studies of such trials and can be read in its entirety here.
Have you written an allegory? Do you specialize in personification or anthropomorphism? Does this topic inspire your muse? Share your thoughts and stories with the WDC community and I will include them in next month's newsletter.
P.S. Every registered author who shares their ideas and/or creative endeavors relating to or inspired by this week's topic will receive an exclusive trinket. I will retire this month's limited-edition trinket at 11:59 p.m. WDC time on Tuesday, June 12, 2018, when my next short stories newsletter goes live.
Further Reading:
 Bugs and Beasts Before the Law
Animals on Trial: Formal Legal Proceedings, Criminal Acts, and Torts of Animals
Beastly Justice
WHEN SOCIETIES PUT ANIMALS ON TRIAL
Medieval animal trials in Europe – A pig sentenced to death by hanging for murder
Back In The Middle Ages, Naughty Animals Were Given Lawyers To Defend Them In Court
Notes:
1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Animal_trial
2. https://www.wired.com/2014/09/fantastically-wrong-europes-insane-history-putting... |
I hope you enjoy this week's featured selections. I occasionally feature static items by members who are no longer with us; some have passed away while others simply aren't active members. Their absence doesn't render their work any less relevant, and if it fits the week's topic I will include it.
Thank you, and have a great week!
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A mouse learns that sometimes there are no exceptions.
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Love between two star-crossed eagles and a sinister plot threaten a desert kingdom.
#1985584 by Soran |
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#2071706 by Not Available. |
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The following is in response to "What Is Courage?" :
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Lilli  writes: The arrival of this newsletter in my inbox was timely. Thank you! 
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Elizabeth writes: I think that sometimes courage can simply mean taking care of yourself, even when you aren't really sure what that's supposed to mean. Right now I am going through a the process of being diagnosed for god knows what. I have pre-existing health conditions, but now something else is wrong, and the doctors don't quite know what to do with me.
I feel like when it comes to sick people, healthy people can be a little condescending, as though it takes courage to even exist when you're sick. It doesn't. But some things do take courage. Seeing a doctor who might diagnose you with something life altering takes courage. Seeing a doctor who might not have any more answers takes courage. Seeing a doctor who might tell you that you're faking it or that it's in your head takes courage. But seeing a doctor is part of taking care of yourself. Seeing friends who might not understand is part of taking care of yourself. Seeing family who expect you to always be at the same level of wellness or unwellness takes courage.
I have been working on longer projects with sick and disabled characters, and I try to put a lot of that courage in them. Not the courage to just exist, but the courage to face the unknown in the hopes that it will be good for you. The courage to look after your physical and emotional well being even when other people and even your own body make that difficult.
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Jayngle Bells  writes: For an interesting take on small, everyday acts of courage - the ones you would not think of as courageous - such as speaking up at a meeting, sticking to a diet, talking to your partner, and how you're never going "feel like it" or "feel it's the right time" - the book "The 5 second rule" by Mel Robbins is a quick read and seems far to simplistic to work.
But it does.
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willwilcox writes: An exceptional newsletter of courage. I loved it.
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Princess Megan Snow Rose  writes: I had to have courage after a bowel obstruction was complicated, was on a breathing tube and learned to walk again. I think we need courage whether it is illness, children, marriage problems and what ever life throws our way. I enjoyed your story about courage. It is an element of survival.
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Quick-Quill  writes: I can say this from experience, this works. No matter how you FEEL what you DO is more important. Sometimes you can do something not intended to be read, but its found and makes a dramatic impact. I wrote two letters to my husband. One he read aloud to me and used everything I wrote against me. Later I wrote a letter to him but not meant for him to read. I poured my heart into that letter, not holding anything back. I folded it, put into the book and hid it in the bottom drawer of my dresser. Months later my husband began to change. He became loving and affectionate. I was suspicious, but never confronted him. I accepted his change a began to love him again. Years later he told me he read that hidden letter and it made him cry. He asked God to help him change. He did. We've been married 45 years
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LJ hiding under the bed  writes: This was a great newsletter! This week, being the week before Earth Day, I think of the courage of Rachel Carson. Her love and passion for nature gave her the courage to write "Silent Spring", a book that had a profound impact on the world. Great courage can be found all around us in acts that may not change the world but change the life of a single person even if just for a few minutes. The agoraphobic that dares to step outside is also a profile in courage.
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dragonwoman writes: I agree that courage has many faces and disguises. Living every day takes courage. Putting one foot in front of the other takes courage. Doing something for the love of another can also take courage. Most of all, I believe getting older takes more than simple courage. You must be brave, strong and hold your head up.
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eyestar~* writes: Wow! This is a moving story that exempifies courage. I thought the ways of looking at courage were inspiring as well, as sometimes we do not look at how we exress courage and you are right about the dictionary not doing it justice. Thanks for sharing your point of view that evokes reflection.
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Jeff  writes: I think vulnerability is one of the most courageous acts these days. It seems like there are so many forces in the world that encourage us to be out for ourselves, pursue our own agendas, be perfect at every moment, never show weakness, and even step on others to get where we need to go. Choosing a life where you humble yourself for others, even embarrass yourself in the service of others if need be... that's just about the most courageous thing I can think of, especially if you're in a situation where appearing that way comes at a cost. I work in an industry with a lot of pride, a lot of ego, and a lot of fear over appearing weak or ineffectual; I guess they think any perceived vulnerability will be used against them. And yet it's the people who don't prioritize those things that often appear the most confident and courageous to everyone else. 
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BIG BAD WOLF is Merry  writes: Courage is being a parent trying to raise a child who has a medical condition and NEVER giving up on them.
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dogpack saving 4premium  writes: Courage and faith for me go together. Humans need someone or something to believe in so that they can draw strength to be full of courage. Usually extreme circumstances help a person bring forth their courage. Many factors may result in a person doing courageous things. This si true for real life as well and because of real life fiction which takes real life experiences and places together a fictional story which then develops into extraordinary word art.
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bellowsface writes: Not sure whether this would constitute courage as in the pure sense but, I had been tasked to deliver a presentation on culture change in business by my boss. It was a joint venture i was going to deliver some and he was going to deliver some. The reason i was nervous was this had to be done in front of 100 plus people all of them in the same job as us. (Which is learning and dvelopment in industry, naimly the automotive industry.' I was terrified, these were my peers, but not only that some of these guys were a lot more switched on than me.
Anyway i had to suck it up and get on with it. My worst fears came through i stood at the front of the auditorium my laser pointer in hand and went blank. I did not know my name, where i was nothing. At that point i realised it could not get any worse in my mind so i cracked a joke i got a giggle. It worked it broke the spell from then on we went on to deliver our session and it was voted the best break out session of the day. We were gobsmacked and over the moon.
Without that stumble, without that fear, would it have gone so well? I think not, i to this day think it gave me the start i needed i got the audience giggling it put us all at ease.
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QPdoll writes: It was such a touching story you shared in this Short Story Newsletter. It helped me to realize how much more difficult it is to express love and caring as opposed to responding negatively. It's much too simple to get angry and continue building a wall that has inadvertently begun being built. It definitely takes courage to take the correct path rather than the easy one. Thank you for sharing.
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lauradena writes: I've been asked many times, especially by my grown sons, to put my life stories into print. This NL brought it all home. Just prior to reading this, I was reflecting on the terrified little country girl who was driven by fear to attack each day. When you are a four year old child, there's no place to run but towards the fears that trauma throws at you. I am going to save this piece because I'm going to need it. Thank you. Your clarification of fear is exactly what I need.
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Short Stories: May 16, 2018 Issue [#8873]
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