We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves By Karen Joy Fowler Essay

Relationships between animals and humans have always been a mixed bag of need and fascination over differences and similarities. For generations humans have used animals as personal companions, work support and to understand themselves better and sometimes to the disadvantage of the animals. Primates are human’s closest relatives genetically and in social behavior relations. This makes them the best option to study and learn more about human psychology and the nervous system Through neurobiology, in the end the use of animals for research would also bring a new realization to our relationship with them and their care and treatment during research.
In her book, We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves by Karen Joy Fowler, we learn about two sisters, Fern and Rose, but these sisters are different than what most people would consider normal sisters, the difference being, Fern is a chimpanzee. Fern is a part of a study to see if chimps could be influenced to take on human behaviors by living as a family member. Sadly something happens and Fern is removed from the family leaving Rose and her family devastated. We learn about each family member’s reaction and how they coped with the loss of Fern and her fate once she is placement in a research facility. Through the telling of the story we learn about the mistreatment of Fern and other primates, as well as some of the benefits that came from studying primates. The most troubling part for Rose and her brother Lowell was that for them…