After our discussion in class yesterday about bears, I was intrigued by the idea of these massive, wild creatures presented as cute and cuddly. I read the chapter on teddies to find the interesting origin story of the classic teddy bear. During a hunting trip, Theodore Roosevelt declined to shoot and kill a bear, sparking cartoons where he was depicted compassionately sparing the bear’s life. The cartoon drawings of the bear were the start of the many famous cartoon bears, such as Winnie the Pooh or Smokey the Bear. These characters grew to be icons and key symbols in culture. The cartoons also inspired a couple who owned a novelty store to make toy bears to “celebrate the president’s act” of compassion toward the bear. The hunting trip was in 1902, and 12000 toy bears had been made in 1903. “In 1907, it made 974,000, and all sorts of copycats rushed into the teddy bear business. Suddenly a large and potentially dangerous animals, respected in the wild, had become a cuddly pillow toy” (Sterba, 168).

The image above shows one of the first bears named ‘Teddy’ to be sold, and it is amazing to see it still in perfect condition. This just shows how important the teddy has been throughout history. The year 2002 marked the 100th anniversary of the cartoons, and so this teddy was part of the National Museum of American History’s political history collection and their The American Presidency: A Glorious Burden exhibit. It is incredible to think that the idyllic, cuddly teddy bear has been a part of our culture for over 100 years by now. This makes me wonder about people like Tim Treadwell who romanticize and idealize wild, unpredictable creatures as friendly and approachable, and how culture has perpetuated this symbol through the years. The teddy bear is presented from a young age and known to be a great and cuddly thing, so how might that affect people’s perceptions of nature and the place of people in it? Does this further separate humans from nature, when people focus on a manufactured, cute image rather than the real thing? Do wild animals somehow seem less wild, or does this mean the shock of encountering one would be even greater? If we don’t properly understand nature and the creatures within it, then it may be difficult to conserve or preserve it.

http://americanhistory.si.edu/press/fact-sheets/teddy-bear