Falconry: Human-Bird Relations 4018-KON149-CLASS

The course comprises three stages: a “theoretical part” involving history, early literature and iconography, a “practical part” involving the reality of contemporary falconry and a “reflective part” aiming to consider any acquired knowledge and experience and place it within the context of current trends in humanist thinking.
1. In the “theoretical part” we will learn about the history of falconry and decipher the values linked to falconry, on the basis of texts and iconographic materials from different cultural traditions of the Old World (with a special focus on southern and western Europe, Arab Muslim culture and Japan). Thus, we will find out what values were linked to falconry in different symbolic systems, since in most cultures it was not only a hunting technique (techne) but part of a more subtle “art of good life” (theoreia). This will bring us into contact with such diverse contexts as European and Mediterranean chivalrous culture (during the crusades and later), Renaissance court culture, Sufism, and Japanese culture in which a unique set of falconry practices called takagari developed. Thus, we will look at selected examples of early literature, overstepping intercultural boundaries within the Mediterranean region: the tradition of falconry treatises and their translations, and examples of early autobiographies from different cultures mentioning the values that falconry contributes to a full human life. We will find out how the close relationship between humans and birds of prey contributed to the start of the development of an empirical and rationalistic model of thinking about the world in the late Middle Ages, but also how the falcon functioned as a symbol of spiritual flight and served as a metaphorical expression of certain aspects of the relationship between mystics and God which were difficult to name and convey.
2. In the “practical part” we will learn about the biological factors of the human-bird relationship. We will look into basic issues from the biology of birds of prey and the determinants of their protection in Poland and in the reality of a globalized world. We will learn about the practical applications of falconry today; we will also take a critical look at the advantages and disadvantages of continuing the falconry tradition in the modern world. We will consider how we can influence these cultural practices and develop them in the most desirable direction. We will look into the details of the debate on falconry in the European Union and in the world as well as the regulations related to a cultural practice that UNESCO recognized as part of humanity’s intangible cultural heritage in 2012. Finally, we will learn in practice how falcons are trained, by watching the human-bird relationship during live contact with contemporary falconry and the birds of prey themselves.
3. In the “reflective part” of the course we will do some critical thinking about the experience we have gained and place it within the theoretical perspective defined by post- and trans-humanism and human-animal studies. In this context, falconry occupies an unobvious position as a “politically incorrect” practice in conflict with dominating viewpoints or trends such as ecofeminism; on the other hand, this enables us to pose a perverse question about the cultural ideals of masculinity in their animal connections. The falcon, as a predator and a carnivorous animal cooperating with humans against other animals, undermines the ease of discourses that link ethical obviousness, animal rights and vegetarianism. The “ancient nature” of the relationship between the falcon and the hunting human, and its evolution in the course of history, enables us to ask about the shape of this relationship in a trans-humanist perspective: after the end of the “human hunter”, can falconry be saved by being given a different function and value, or should falcons cease to accompany humans who no longer hunt? At the same time, the relationship between falcon and human opens up a debate on the boundaries of domestication. As one of few animals among those entering relationships with humans, falcons remain “wild”, i.e. they don’t lose the ability to live in the wild by themselves. On the other hand, in a world filled by the anthroposphere, there is less and less “wild” space available, and falcons are growing closer to humans by colonizing cities. To conclude, we will take the risk of considering the relationship “from the falcon’s point of view”.