Grizzly Man study and discussion questions

1.How did Timothy Treadwell say that he saw himself in relationship to the bears with whom he spent 13 summers in Alaska?
He wanted to be a bear, to become one with them.

2. Were the grizzlies Treadwell’s friends? What, if anything, do his names for the bears (like “Mr. Chocolate”) suggest about his attitude toward them?Maybe, Treadwell saw the bears as his friends but they were not. By giving the bears names he made them domesticated in his eyes. This is a careless attitude towards an animal of nature.

3. What can we make of Treadwell’s celebrity status, his appearances on commercial television programs like “Letterman”?By 2001, Treadwell became notable enough to receive extensive media attention both on television and in environmental circles. He frequently made public appearances as an environmental activist. He traveled throughout the United States to educate school children about bears and appeared on the Discovery Channel, the Late Show with David Letterman, and Dateline NBC to discuss his experiences. He was also a co-author, with Jewel Palovak, of the book Among Grizzlies: Living with Wild Bears in Alaska, in which he described his adventures on the Alaska Peninsula. Treadwell, along with his friends Palovak and former American Gladiator Jonathan Byrne, founded Grizzly People, a grassroots organization devoted to protecting bears and preserving their wilderness habitat

4. Treadwell claims that grizzlies have been “misunderstood.” Have they? What do you know about the history of these bears?I do not think they have been misunderstood, just not respected for what they are. It’s easy to respect that the shark is a killing machine because it looks scary and is not cuddly looking or has had it’s image made into a child’s favorite stuffed animal.

5. Is there a place for grizzlies in the lower forty-eight states? Why might some groups think so and others not?
We have to, at some level, make place for them I the lower 48 states. We are the ones encroaching on their land. Easier said than done huh? I think to be fair to the grizzly, we do not offer enough room for it to live naturally which in turn puts humans at risk when a grizzly takes a walk into your suburban neighborhood.

6. What attitude does Willy Fulton (the pilot) exhibit toward Treadwell?
A good friend.

7. What does the tolerance of the grizzlies for Treadwell’s presence among them say about them? Were they intimidated by him, do you think?
Was it really tolerance in the human sense? I think Treadwell just didn’t fit into their world so they hadn’t categorized him as a threat or snack….yet.

8. What was Treadwell’s view of nature? Did he see it as a utopian ideal or was he merely naïve?
I think he was both naïve and he saw nature as an utopian ideal. Remember Alaska and the bears are what he attributes as his saving grace from drugs.

9. What did Treadwell want? (Transcendence? A religious experience? Celebrity? Protection?) What was he seeking? What kept him coming back?
Transcendence because he wanted to become a bear. A religious experience because it saved him from the brink of a druggie’s death. And protection, for the animals he loved.

10. Was Treadwell an activist? An ecologist? An anthropologist? A preservationist?
I think he had a little bit of all the ‘ists’ in him however misguided his intentions.

11. Several of us laughed aloud during the viewing of the film? Recall what made us laugh and comment on those particular scenes? Was the filmmaker’s humor intentional?
I think that Treadwell was naturally a humorous man. Some of the humor was mainstream and some of the humor came from his bizarre behavior.

12. What does the filmmaker want us to think about Treadwell and his experiences?In his narration, he depicts Treadwell as a disturbed man who may have had a deathwish toward the end of his life, but also refuses to condemn him for this.

13. How does the filmmaker view the relationship between humans and nature? How about Treadwell?

14. How did the Native American Ph.D regard Treadwell and his experiences?
"At best he's misguided," Deb Liggett, superintendent at Katmai and Lake Clark national parks, told the Anchorage Daily News in 2001. "At worst, he's dangerous. If Timothy models unsafe behavior, that ultimately puts bears and other visitors at risk."

15. What should our attitude toward Timothy Treadwell and Amy be? Was their conduct with the bears “ethical”?
I feel sympathy for anyone who would die in such a violent way but I have to think that it was not a necessary and preventable death. That is to be pitied. There behavior was not ethical, in my opinion. To protect nature, you have to respect nature and Treadwell did not respect the Grizzlies by invading their home turf.