The Meaning of The Fox and the Hound: A Misunderstood Literary Masterpiece

[@CardinalWest]

If you enjoyed this video, please consider checking out my debut xenofiction novel, Winter Without End: www.fenrispublishing.com/winter A post-apocalyptic story told through the eyes of a dog, Winter Without End follows a Labrador retriever who, after being abandoned by his human family in the aftermath of a devastating pandemic, makes an uneasy alliance with a wounded wolf in order to survive.

[@altarush]

Disney should secure the rights for it.

[@zainmudassir2964]

@@altarush A24 studios preferably. Disney plays it too safe

[@lyndsiedavis4490]

yea this def gonna get me back into reading at least for a bit. what a beautiful and interesting and original idea!!!

[@DamonNomad82]

I adored the Disney movie version as a small child, but discovered Mannix's novel on my grandparents' bookshelf when I was 11 years old. After getting over my initial shock at how much darker the book was than the movie, I couldn't put the book down, as it held a deep fascination for me. I reread it several times over the next few years. Fortunately, the edition I had access to explained that Mannix had grown up loving what was then rural eastern Pennsylvania, and was devastated by the changes brought by urban expansion swallowing the area. Thus, I was aware that the tale was one that mourned the destruction of the author's boyhood environment, and the devastating effects of urbanization on wildlife as represented by Tod, domestic animals as represented by Copper and human beings as represented by Copper's master, all of whom were ultimately destroyed by it.

[@hughdew7622]

A common theme which I'm just realizing now keeps on bringing me back to xenofiction is the crushing reminder of how small we truly are a species, despite how far we have come to try stand above the natural order of life and death in nature. Through the perspectives of animals, I end up sympathizing and relating to their in-the-moment mentalities and come out of the stories with a far wider outlook on life. Interesting stuff! Great video by the way! Love these subjects on literature and hope to see more of your thoughts!

[@santinocherry445]

How is it that Buddhists know how to cheat death though. Because even to cheat death a little bit proves it is a malleable universe. Meaning, how can they use their mind to make sure they’re body doesn’t dissolve after death?

[@theangrydweller1002]

Animals feel more humans then humans at this point

[@arnowisp6244]

@@theangrydweller1002 No. Animals are Animald and we are becoming more like them.

[@theangrydweller1002]

@@arnowisp6244 good I’m ok with that. We aren’t perfect machines where just animals

[@arnowisp6244]

@@theangrydweller1002 Dude. I mean as Vicious as Animals.

[@strayiggytv]

Even today I still hear ranchers say coyotes are going to destroy all the game animals if we don't eradicate them. The best response when people say things like that isn't to counter them it's to say "explain to me how" and watch them stumble over their explanation or sometimes not even have one.

[@XtraOrdinar-y]

No Ken thinks we should eradicate coyotes unless they’re invasive which the are to eastern America

[@vampirefrompluto9788]

Years ago in high school I was re-reading Black Beauty when a teacher had all of us read the current page of whatever book we were reading out loud (she did this kind of thing randomly to "hear what the kids are reading"). I got to read aloud about the horse drawn cabs colliding killing both horses😬 On a more humorous note another time the teacher had us do this a girl I didn't care for had to read aloud a sex scene from 50 Shades of Gray!🤣(the sex scene involving ice cream) The book series was then banned from the classroom!

[@dakat5131]

"You sure? This might ruins someone's day" "Nonsense, how bad could it be?"

[@emmareiman64]

Me when I specifically noted the teacher that 'whatever you do, do Not read pages XYZ out loud in front of the class' as those pages described some graphic autopsy stuff Guess what pages the teacher decided to start reading out loud?

[@IdiotinGlans]

I borrowed first book in the Witcher series from school library to read at home. The same day one of teachers felt sick and the school scrambled to find us last minute substitute and saddled us with someone who had no idea on the subject and decided to just have us spend the lesson by reading books out loud. Asked who had any book at hand. I rised my hand. A popular gid was given the Witcher and begun reading from the beginning. First book in the series opens on a sex scene.

[@KoneSkirata]

The damage our species has done to this planet has been unthinkable. The book perfectly encapsulates this realization, and once it hits the reader, it hits them like a train. There are no winners to this hunt, there's only meaningless existence followed by meaningless death, set before a backdrop that is the real Enemy. Nonetheless I am glad that you contrapose the book's bleak message with a hopeful one, one of gradual retribution and rehabilitation for our own mistakes.

[@Firguy_the_Foot_Fetishist]

I find that this novel is a lot like other pieces of fiction written in the 20th century where the main characters represent a cherished fixture of tradition being gradually phased out by modernity. There's a striking amount of parallels between this and Sam Peckinpah's film, The Wild Bunch, of all things.

[@iamdiscothedrunkhippo5380]

I’ve had my sleep schedule utterly destroyed because I can’t stop watching your videos. Just amazing work.

[@zero1zerolast393]

Just posting this so I can ruin your sleep cycle again

[@Cooky_McGee]

i shall also ruin your sleep cycle by posting this

[@alejandraayala8815]

Adding to the sleep cycle ruining gang

[@TrianglePants]

Still sleeping?

[@aWolffromElsewhere]

I've been occasionally looking around because I want to get a physical copy of this book and read it. It reminds me of a great passage in A Black Fox Running "The breeze, which was bending the treetops, ruffled his brush and the keen beauty of Teg filled his thoughts. O foxes! O my blood brothers and sisters! Under the trees the shade was cold, the crisp tinge of autumn was on his nose. To live is to run. Always running - away from death, into death. Perhaps Man kills us to kill a memory. We are ghosts of Man the animal and he can’t live with the knowledge." Humanity must make peace with the animal within, because she is not a ghost, she is our body and the ancestors of all living things back along the interwoven tapestry of time and space, and even beyond that. Our thoughts and abstractions are only a fragment of what we are, and we build civilization based on a tiny frame of reference. If we don't reconcile the symbolic and the organic, god with earth, we will destroy ourselves.

[@CardinalWest]

Your comment is reminding me of how excellent the prose in A Black Fox Running is (not that I could ever forget lol)

[@aWolffromElsewhere]

@@CardinalWest I read the book once, then immediately read it again because the thread between the words is like being struck with the majesty of creation itself. I've never in my life read something so sincere and psychologically astute. Tears man, lots of tears. Even the experience of Wulfgar's grief is the book is real. It's not 5 stages of grief, its a cycle and the loss never truly leaves you.

[@MrPSaun]

This was beautiful. "The Fox and the Hound" was my grandmother's favorite film. In the age of VHS, us grandchildren had three choices when visiting, "The Fox and the Hound", "The Little Mermaid", or "Balto". I remember always picking "The Fox and the Hound" during the Ice Storm of '98 in Maine. Now, here I am, in my 31st year of life, discovering the book the film was based on, and I'm in tears. Throughout my life out-of-state cousins would come to visit the family land to vacation, but I always knew it on a deeper level. In my early adulthood my cousin, and her then boyfriend, came to visit in the Summer, and my grandmother said to me, at the kitchen table from out of nowhere, "they come every year from the city, but we are different people," I will never forget that.

[@BleedingBlackBlood69]

Oh my gosh I almost forgot about Balto

[@Jebbtube]

Interesting that Chief and Copper's roles are reversed in the Disney film.

[@samfritz645]

Anyone else here from Jenny Nicholson’s Patreon? Regardless, great video!

[@CardinalWest]

I'm genuinely curious now, did she post a link to it? I saw this video's analytics spike the other day and I was wondering what happened.

[@steadie]

​@@CardinalWest she mentions this video in a patreon video she made on "Prejudice Allegories in Children’s Media" when she was talking about the fox and the hound, and she linked the video in the description of the patreon post. ^_^

[@CardinalWest]

Interesting, thanks for letting me know!

[@tomjacobs9555]

I've been considering writing a Redwall esk story, these videos have begun to fuel that desire.

[@renthegigglefox]

There are a couple of Japanese xenofiction stories that I think you'd be interested in taking a look at. The first, and more easily viewed is the Studio Ghibli film Pom Poko, which is an environmentalist story told from the perspective of a group of Tanuki during the housing boom of the late 20th century. The other is a series of manga adapted into two anime series collectively known as the Ginga (Silver Fang) Legacy. The first is Nagreboshi Gin (Shooting Star Gin) which tells the story of a group of wild, former hunting dogs who gather to fight off the bears threatening their former masters. The sequel, Densetsu Weed (Legend Weed), is far more grandiose, but nevertheless weaves the impact of man, and the horrors of war into its narrative, as it sets two groups of dogs against each other to fight for the territory won by Gin and his comrades, with a constant reminder that cruelty (of man) can have dire consequences.

[@stickinittotheman1]

Truly marvelous work friend, this has been super interesting and enlightening! My grandfather was a trapper for most of his adult life off and on. He was born in 1944, right in the middle of wartime. He lived a very hard life as a poor farmer, airborn division soldier in Korea, and then a slightly less poor, damaged man, afterwards. He was an honorable man, who was always humane among all different people, as well as all animals, despite trapping and hunting. Never wasting any part of an animal, and granting quick, poison free deaths to anything he killed. --- Regardless. he always despised coyotes, foxes, and other predators, as he was very protective of his animals. He absolutely was affected by the information of the times, which I never understood until now. Fantastic work! Love and Peace folks.

[@mariuspoppFM]

So what

[@stickinittotheman1]

@@mariuspoppFM In fairness, the majority of my comment was for context. He was affected by the paranoia and misinformation of his time, making him incredibly biased. He over hunted and trapped those predators, and now I understand why. It gave me a new perspective, as I never considered that he was doing what was "common" back then; I always assumed he had some personal vendetta or something. Love and Peace, hope all is well 🤘

[@cptrzyk5177]

Sounds like a ahole to me.

[@vulpecula297]

Good taste in music, I love to see that there is actually another human being that listens to Black Hill stuff.

[@florathefauna1919]

Right??

[@slpn2314]

This is my favorite movie from my childhood, the music is sooooo incredible. Old kids movies had some of the best scores ever

[@vivalavalentina]

I don't think there's a single thing in this life that I cherish more than the animals of nature, and with that in mind I have to get something off my chest regarding your commentary on Allegory vs. Applicability. While I do agree overall that subtlety is a better device in storytelling at conveying your messages, I think it's important for certain allegories to exist without subtlety to insinuate the urgency of the message present. In the case of Troubled Waters, while I agree it is less impactful overall in its environmental messaging compared to TFATH, I can't bring myself to condemn his insistence of just how badly we've messed up our environment, even if it does hinder the quality of the novel from an "artistic" perspective, we have to remember that these are REAL problems that were and still are REALLY happening that have devastating consequences on all of us. Especially given how bad it was at the time the book was published, I genuinely can't blame him, and I think it's more important to get the statement out than to make a good story. But I should still mention that The Fox and the Hound wound up selling the message a lot better to audiences than Troubled Waters did. Whether that's down to the difference in popularity between the two or if the subtlety of the former was just THAT impactful in the readers' minds I'm not entirely sure of. Anyways, yeah. Just wanted to get that off my chest. This video was excellent and I'll likely be binging your content for the rest of the night haha.

[@trevorminyard8885]

As far as allegory vs. applicability goes I’d say references to specific events are more applicable to unspecific concepts because of their allegorical portrayal. For instance The War Prayer by Mark Twain was written as a direct response to the American-Filipino War but can be applied to almost any war of a similar nature. Or the fact that the fall of the Empire in Star Wars to the ragtag Rebel alliance and groups of guerrilla fighters is a direct reference to the US getting bested by the Viet Cong but can also be referred to while talking about the US winning independence from the British or Afghanistan and the Soviets. I’d say applicability is helped by allegory if anything.

[@albertwalderhaug2601]

I love that you chose Black Hill and Silent Island for the music of this video. The minute I recognized the band’s music, it immediately made me smile. I also think it fits well with topic and goes well with the beautiful animation both in the beginning and “subtly” in the end credits. Excellent taste, my friend. I’m looking forward to future videos.

[@alexburn4014]

god do i feel the grief of being in a changing land. in new England i keep finding more and more of the rural home i grew up in slowly being stripped away for buildings that i don't have a clue about. storage for construction buildings i think. Even the smallest bits of trees are being torn down for these stupid buildings. the wilds are being destroyed for nothing, animals left homeless, and i feel powerless to stop them from destroying my home.

[@midshipman8654]

I really appreciate the distinction you made between exploring a theme and conveying a message. I think that is definitely something that has often distinguished the works i’ve thought about more often from those that kind of fell to the wayside. how there is a play to the subject matter that can be considered and looked at differently, with sudtly different, but related, hues and tones. Even if there might be something thats more “obviously intentionally”, It appeals to something a bit more ineffable and universal.

[@MrBulbasaurlover]

I just talked to my mom about this and read her the last few paragraphs yesterday, what a coincidence!

[@graylykan2739]

Very insightful video. I never read the book of the Fox and the Hound, but I heard its tragic ending and my sister had read it, if I recall correctly. Disney's adaptation of The Fox and the Hound has been one of my favorite animated films of all time, even if it does stray from its source material. I wanted to ask this for a while, and since reading Volume 5 recently, its come back to me. Have you read the manga series Kori Senman (or "The Fox & Little Tanuki" in English)? It's a fairly recent manga series by Mi Tagawa, its first volume published in 2018 and its currently on 5 volumes. Its got great art and it stars supernatural animals from Japanese folklore. It's a bit on the slice-of-life side, but has its share of darkness, especially the recent two volumes. Its protagonist is a powerful black fox spirit named Senzou who, after getting sealed for 300 years by the Sun Goddess Amaterasu for bad behavior, is forced to look after a Tanuki (Japanese racoon dog) named Manpachi and raise him to become a servant of the gods and, in the process, learns to be a better person. It's got foxes, wolves, a dog, and other animals like the Mustelid family (a badger and, recently, a ferret and an otter) and humans. There's also some shape-shifting, as all the animal characters are supernatural. Congratulations on publishing your book and keep up the excellent work! I always look forward to what topics about animal xenofiction you explore, since I'm in the process of writing my own. Animal Xenofiction is a subgenre that is so overlooked nowadays in the mainstream of literature, outside the internet.

[@CardinalWest]

Thanks! And I haven't read that manga (or heard of it before), but I might have to check it out.

[@dragonuprising8378]

Always a joy to watch a video by you sir and this was no expection! Though I had done some research into wildlife and that crisis that procedded it within the 19th century,I never truly realised just how bad it got so this was some great information. Also,though the MC I'm writing is a werewolf so it doesn't completely count,as someone who's trying to really portray a character who both understands & lives through the brutality of nature that people ignore while showing the negatives of mankind and the constant struggle of their control over it,this video has given me so much more insight to help strengthen this that topic within my novel

[@Romanticoutlaw]

that Troubled Waters passage... how, exactly, does the fish know any of that? Especially once we move the scope from the fish's biological experience to villagers drinking polluted water. I completely started to tune it out after a bit, which is unfortunate for its purpose

[@inthewoods5494]

I’m sorry but I disagree. I’m writing a story using werewolves as an allegory to PTSD, how trauma and encountering your monster, can turn YOU into a monster as well. It has great emotional significance to me. I poured my heart and soul into that, as somebody who struggles immensely with trauma. I do not think my story is bad because it is using animals to convey a wider message.

[@inthewoods5494]

@@gregoryford2532 MY premise seems on the nose and unoriginal? Are you serious? Name somebody else who’s done the same thing. And how do you know it’s on the nose. You haven’t even read it.

[@AJadedLizard]

41:33 Okay, so I will say I disagree with you here, because Godzilla was *literally* written about nuclear war and is the longest running film series in history. (Lord of the Rings is, in fact, only scant months older than the first film, both first appearing in 1954). Now, Godzilla has endured in fact *because* it has evolved, but while it isn't *always* allegory the best-loved entries in both the Japanese and American series do have heavy allegorical elements. James Cameron's Avatar is an example of *bad* allegory but I hesitate to say that all allegory is bad *because* Avatar is bad. A lot of allegory is quite anvilicious but, as TV Tropes is fond of saying, some anvils need to be dropped. That said, the skill and efficiency with which those anvils fall definitely makes a difference, which is why people are still talking about Gojira almost 70 years after its release, and people stopped talking about Cameron's film within less than five.

[@AJadedLizard]

@@gregoryford2532 Is it not? If we compare the original Avatar and Gojira in a vaccum, Gojira is still the more impactful film in spite of being very specific in its allegory. If anything it's significantly more specific than Avatar is, drawing from real-life imagery (specifically the Tokyo Fire Bombing Raids in 1945), while Avatar is only vaguely environmental.

[@inkylynx2777]

Damn, that was good. I was just perusing your channel a second ago wanting to listen to something while playing a game! I shall chew on this more as I relisten to this over and over and over again...

[@Wandergirl108]

I can't express how much I needed to hear the message "we've been here before" right now when it comes to environmental disaster. As infuriating as the past "predator control" preachers and perpetrators described here were to hear about, and as much as it seemed that their greed and ignorance to the ways of nature would doom everything…they didn't. Perhaps the disasters we're currently on the cusp of can still be turned back. Thank you for this dose of hope.

[@theflamingphoenix]

Wow, your videos are always so well put together and engaging. I first found your channel a few months ago from your Zuko analysis. I've always been a person who gravitates toward stories that are driven by, or about animals, and your xenofiction videos really inspire me to pursue my own writing, and ask myself the bigger questions behind why I want to write it. While the ideas I have are VERY fantasy based and don't fall exactly into xenofiction, these videos still strike a cord with me and get me thinking about it. Don't know how to cap this off, but thank you for the amount of dedication you put into your videos! I hope you find a bigger audience someday, it's what you deserve.

[@theshockinglyeloquentdog9945]

this was really good and you're right! i absolutely missed the point of The Fox and The Hound. your title pulled me in and your essay was incredibly informative

[@moon8568]

This was incredible, thank you so much for putting me onto this book.

[@mrmoviemanic1]

Very good video Cardinal. I'm not much of a fan of some of your videos, but you truly care deeply about animal novels and it showcases where your true love is.

[@purplehaze2358]

I think I'm simultaneously experiencing every stage of grief knowing that wolf extermination programs are still ongoing in certain parts of the US.

[@5ilver42]

_" : Then one day the nasty sour-smelling men from the great, somber place where dogs were not allowed came back. With him were the leather-smelling men, but now they were not friendly. There were some other people too, people who had exclaimed over Copper and patted him when he and the Master came back with the last fox, but now their voices were angry and they pushed him aside. They talked and talked to the Master, while Copper listened in dumb misery._ _" : He heard a sound he had never heard before. The Master was crying. He sat on the edge of the bed, sobbing, and tears came through his fingers. Copper forced his way through the people and anxiously licked the Master's hands, asking to help. The Master stroked his head just as he had in the old days, and Copper wriggled joyfully._ _" : The Master went to the wall, took down the gun, and loaded it. Copper barked and cavorted happily. They were going hunting again, and surely the Master would take him? Yes, the Master called to him and, leaving the people, they went outside._ _" : The Master led him a little way from the cabin and, sitting down beside him, stroked his head. Copper licked his face, and whined. They had killed the great fox, the fox that had eluded from for so many years. Now they were together again, and happy, for nothing could separate them._ _" : The Master made him lie down, and then held one hand over his eyes. Copper lay trustingly and contentedly. The Master knew best. Did he recall the many good times they had had together and this last great run - a day and a night and part of another day? Of course he did. Copper gave the Master's hand one last lick. He did not care what happened as long as he would never be separated from the Master, for he had killed the great fox, and in this miserable, fouled land there was longer any place for fox, hound, or human being._

[@snugglyduck6534]

The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog. Fox News / you. ;)

[@bigbiggoblin2873]

Incredible. Just found your channel, and I have been thoroughly enjoying. Ecology/environmental fiction is needed much more this day and age, without preaching! Vids like these give me inspiration. Thanks.

[@WolfmanArt]

I wouldn't mind seeing an authentic retelling of Daniel Mannix's novel.

[@wyattsteel411]

I'd love to see it too, I think, but at the same time, I don't think it would work. The novel barely has any dialogue so it would be a challenge to adapt, and who would pay to see it anyway? You also risk losing the book's environmentalist thread without the narrator. Though, I do have a cool idea: edit all the film so that it's only in the colors canids can see (grayscale, yellow, and blue) to really sell the "you're an animal" perspective.

[@sheppazii]

Thank you for helping me realize that I really need to read this book.

[@fengatormx6]

This is one of the most beautiful video essays I've ever watched. Thoroughly researched, and wonderfully executed. Absolutely a golden example of quality content

[@SonofPlonky]

I will return, I have to pace myself, snitter still fucks me up.

[@Romanticoutlaw]

I've never gotten over snitter

[@krankarvolund7771]

"The Illiad had always played second fiddle to its sequel, the Oddissey" That is probably true in the modern cultural mind, but until like the modern era, or even the contemporary era, it's the Illiad that was the center piece of culture. Because it was a time of kings and gods, of grandiose wars and political intrigues, and so the people who made the culture wanted to be affiliated to the heroes of the Illiad. And while there was only one Oddysseus, there was myriads of heroes in the Illiad. Rome decided that they were the descendants of Aenaeus, a troyan son of Venus, and wrote an entire book about him. The franks in the middle-ages invented Francon, a troyan hero who fled his city and founded a kingdom in Gallica. And countless other sequels or myths are inspired by the Illiad, while I don't remember any ancient work inspired by the Oddissey ^^

[@krankarvolund7771]

@@gregoryford2532 How can the point of the phrase "The Illiad have always played second fiddle to the Oddissey" be "The Illiad had been the most popular of the two by large until modern days"? ^^'

[@corvusastrum2982]

So I strongly suppose I shouldn't watch this if I haven't read the book, right? Up until now I didn't even know that it exists, which is a bit silly, almost every single disney movie is based on an existing story, but I never thought that far with this one. I really love both Black Beauty and White Fang, so I'm pretty sure I'd enjoy this book too, but after some research I'd really have to hunt it down if I want a physical copy. I can't find one anywhere, not even an audio version, it's all covered by the disney adaptation, really annoying

[@Arob4343]

People often seem to hate past generations for what they did to each other. But I hate them for how they treated animals. Trying to eradicate species is awful

[@vixymix101]

They tried to mess with the natural world, indigenous people were some of the only few that knew how it truly worked, and I wouldn't doubt tried to warn or educate what they were doing.

[@enricomassignani]

It's so tragic that, despite many cruel hunting methods still being legal, animals are still more respected today than at any point in modern history. 😢

[@trogsothoth4919]

you might enjoy Raptor Red by Robert T. Bakker if you haven't read it already, it's basically white fang following a Utah raptor through her trials and tribulations. it's the book i often hail as my favorite!

[@CandyThePuppy]

2:00 Honestly, this story made me think most about the American Civil War, when literal brothers turned against brothers, friends against friends, fathers against sons.

[@krankarvolund7771]

About the strength of subtlery, you say that "preachy" works will often be less sucessful, but when the message is subtle, it's often ignored. Case in point, very few people noticed the message of the FOx and the Hound, and the Disney adaptation completely forgot it. And even those who want to bash Disney for a bad adaptation will ignore the message. If we take another famous novel, 1984 is indeed very applicable... to a point where everyone will use it with no regards for its actual message, and from all the political spectrum including the authoritarians and fascists that were denounced by the book. So, subtelry has strengths, but it also has weaknesses ^^

[@wtk6069]

Disney destroyed this story. It should have been done more in the vein of The Plague Dogs.

[@sudanemamimikiki1527]

disney told a good story that stands as its own thing as one of the best animated movies the studio has ever made. they did the right thing.

[@DamonNomad82]

The Disney movie was a terrible adaptation, but not a terrible movie. I'm still glad Disney made it and that they butchered the source material so much because that led to Don Bluth leaving Disney, which led to the creation of some of the best animated films in history (and, to be fair, some not so great animated films as well).

[@ShiranuiCS]

i've recently discovered your channel and watched some of your videos (the other one about disney's fox and the hound adaptation, which was great timing because i'd been hoping to hear someone talk at length about the fox and the hound for a long time; and the one about NAX literature) and i'm utterly delighted! in just a matter of days you've gotten me so interested in xenofiction. the way you analyze and reflect on these works of literature is fascinating and your love for xenofiction is very contagious 😄 keep up the amazing work! i'll keep marathoning your videos 😉

[@lukasribin4168]

Sorry that this is off topic, but do you happen to know of a xenofiction book about a cat who mostly tries to survive in the forest? I forget how it ended up there. I can’t remember hardly anything about it, except that at one point the cat had to lap up extremely cold water in the woods and there was a paragraph about how the awfully cold water felt when the cat had no food inside its stomach and was still starving. Idk why it stuck with me, but I cannot remember the title. I think the cat was black as well and maybe long haired but that’s up in the air.

[@pugjuice8462]

Is it possibly one of the books from the Warriors series? There are some main character cats who have black fur, and who were trying to survive in a forest after being used to life with humans.

[@kathrineici9811]

That could be Warriors or Tailchaser’s Song or Felidea maybe?

[@CloudCuckooCountry]

KZbin once again didn't notify me that you had uploaded a video and I had to check manually grrr Fantastic video! All of Mannix's novels have an unavoidable environmentalist theme, but you did a great job putting it into context and breaking it down in detail. I certainly am also very guilty of being dazzled by the unfettered naturalism of Mannix's style to the detriment of properly appreciating his environmental themes. In my defense, there are many works of fiction out there that provide a take on environmentalism, but very few places where I can get realist storytelling as raw as Mannix's. It's been quite a long time since I last read him, so maybe he deserves a reread after I pull myself out of my latest literary rabbithole haha P.S. Very excited for your book P.P.S. Checking out the artist who did the backing tracks for this video cos blimey the music is too good

[@CardinalWest]

Thanks for the kind words! Also yes, Black Hill makes some fantastic music, it was awesome of him to let me use it here.

[@midshipman8654]

really appreciate this earthday video. I find a lot of stuff in the general category distasteful. trying to effect things by targeting a sense of shame, outrage, and embodying a sort of reactive mentality. I often feel that it actively distances people away from the core of these real concerns towards something more petty. This is something more wholistic and coming from a place of understanding.

[@claudeyaz]

Always made me think of the Chinese quote.. "Once the hunt is over, the dog is boiled."

[@goldman77700]

Other asians have a similar line of thinking. "Once the dog is old and useless, it becomes dinner."

[@matthewholt6168]

What a powerful essay. Last 5 minutes are practically mandatory viewing.

[@hereticsaint100]

Fox and Hound sounds painfully depressing. I hate "dog dying" books.

[@beneficent2557]

Life is dog eat dog. No mercy exists outside the mind.

[@enricomassignani]

I read a few chapters yesterday, and they've haunted me since 😅😢 The ending of the "third hunt" chapter, when the vixen tries to revive the dead kits, was especially gut-wrenching. At the same time, I appreciated how the author doesn't try to sell Tod as "the hero" of the story, nor overly humanizes him. Instead, he is ready to abandon the kits to their fate, knowing he can mate again.

[@brandielee7971]

I only just found you today, but I greatly enjoy your video essays. You make me want to read these books, I've only vaguely been aware of them before now.

[@katelynthewhitewerewolf6376]

I like the Disney version more. I also like the movie too.

[@lyndsiedavis4490]

you ever hear about a book and you’re like “man i might actually buy that and blow thru it” yea that was the ad for your book for me. def checking that out. just wanted to say that.

[@serafine666]

I am of the opinion that Mannix' subtlety seriously diminished applicability. If you need someone to explain the point of a work before you can apply it, you won't be able to apply it effectively.

[@domino_hyena]

new subscriber here just wanted to let u know how much i appreciate that u take the time to do some tone setting for your videos got ur book in the mail, cant wait to read!

[@f.ah.c2114]

Trying to process this having less than 12k views.

[@Baoudor]

excellent work on this.

[@Shadowpaw_1618]

This video only made me want to get this book and read it. So I will do just that!

[@amandaski]

Well, I was brought to this channel by your Avatar the Last Airbender analysis but now, now I think I have to subscribe.

[@zebrisky]

Great video, as per usual, but did you animate the opening? If so, great job!

[@CardinalWest]

Thanks! And no, the opening was done by Byron Dunbar, whose stuff is linked in the description.

[@powersurge_beast]

I love you for this. Many tears brother.

[@bigmoe9856]

This was great to listen to. I loved the book and, while I was greatly favoring for the grit of nature, it wasn't completely unnoticed how the world was changing due to man's influence. Just never quite put the Hunter as representative for mankind itself.

[@orxalot]

Got really happy when I recognized that guitar riff in the intro. Fantastic taste

[@tyrannotherium7873]

Is your book a graphic novel?

[@avrinrose5457]

Can you talk about Kaitou Joker?

[@ThatMissQuin]

Your videos had me immediately re watch the film and buy the novel. I'm excited.

[@powerofanime1]

I am an obsessive reader, and yet I never knew The Fox and the Hound was originally a book.

[@princesspikachu3915]

How could you not know? It’s literally in the opening credits.

[@powerofanime1]

@@princesspikachu3915 I don't pay that much attention to credits outside of the Actors, and sometimes the Director and Producer. Usually, when I'm watching at home, I skip them entirely. Even in the exceptions to that, like this movie's case, I'm too absorbed in the background to pay attention to the text.

[@VinnyMartello]

Think we as a society need to be more spread out. Purely an opinion, but I believe if everyone owned an acre of land, had a garden, and tended to a few chickens and goats, I would reckon that things would be a little more balanced. Big cities are completely unnatural.

[@genera1013]

My only concern with this is that everyone would have to be a jack of all trades. If everyone is growing their own food and caring for their animals, when would anyone have time to focus on trades like shoe making or smithing? I definitely agree on large cities being unnatural, but not everyone is meant to be a farmer.

[@VinnyMartello]

You make a valid counter argument. I’d still prefer a society of “Jack of all trades” over a society of “Jack of all asses”.

[@genera1013]

@@VinnyMartello True, though I feel we need a society where a person can specialize. One may not be good at growing crops, but they make your tools for you. So I'd suggest smaller communities that are self sufficient as communities, but that also raises the issue of tribalism and xenophobia. Travel between communities would be discouraged and careers in the arts would be frowned upon as well.

[@VinnyMartello]

Problem is the “higher education “ these days is liberal arts and “engineering”. The “specialized” stuff seems kinda useless. All paperwork and no real world skills. The other day I asked my wife (masters in mechanical engineering, thesis on fluids) “hey honey what’s the difference between a centrifugal pump and a positive displacement pump?” She didn’t even know what those were. She’s supposed to be a specialist in fluids and has never heard of a pump. Our country desperately needs more skilled trades. More trades, less college.

[@genera1013]

@@VinnyMartello Yeah, while there will always be a place for philosophy, the focus should be more on trades and practical skills

[@NineNoRouge]

great video, I thought this was about the Disney movie and came out far better educated. Thank you.

[@over-educatedxennial6753]

Unfortunately, we really have not advanced. Enormous swaths of land are now dedicated to factory farming. Also, in most places, killing of predators like coyotes is permitted and even encouraged. We kill deer in droves because the population needs to be "managed" when we're continuing to kill off predators. I could go on forever, but I'll end on the cougar. In the East, we're down to a small isolated population in Florida. Careless, speeding drivers on habitat-invading highways cause the highest number of deaths annually for that subspecies. As far as the west goes, a famous cougar in CA was recently euthanized after incurring multiple serious injuries, again due to drivers. Humans suck.

[@wispfire2545]

A very interesting video, good work. (:

[@misterclark2028]

Yo why did you delete the Avatar Series Review? I just tried to look for it and found out it was deleted.

[@sarahmellinger3335]

no reason they would it preformed real well youtube is likely the culprite

[@Richardiii2]

I liked the credits. Very nice.

[@alalessia]

Never knew what the novel was about. It's so true though and underlines your point about allegory vs applicability. It's still applicable today and that makes it deeply troubling. Civilization may be good for humans in the short term but man we sure doomed our planet in the process .-. Thank you for the video, it's such a joy to watch these!

[@sirzorg5728]

As a farmer, I can tell you one of the biggest economic drivers of habitat conversion is property taxes. Wild, undeveloped land is prohibitively expensive. It is a luxury only within reach of the incredibly wealthy. If you own land and don't go crazy trying to min-max it's industrial productivity, then you pay unjustifiable rent to the government for the trouble. The problem is made worse because the federal government doesn't pay any taxes to the counties for the land they own, despite benefitting from all the same services as the local landowners. This burdens the counties, such that they must increase the taxes to cover services on lands that are unfairly exempt from taxation. Property tax is the main source of revenue for county governments, so all the government welfare that city-rats vote for is taken from the countryside, and that theft has to be paid for at the expense of the opportunity for responsible land management.

[@hazelhedgewitch2188]

Immidiate like!!! 🇵🇸✊🏻

[@pacoramon9468]

The point if that bears are dumb.

[@emeraldglass437]

Animals are so treated wrong for the things humans do to stay alive as well

[@lagomortis8270]

Educational and simply beautiful video

[@colemills6692]

Tod in the book sounds like Conan the barbarian.

[@ZGuy0fSci]

It makes ya think. (and that matters)

[@desmodysseus1974]

Good God this video is beautifully made.

[@SUPERALEX2623]

Thanks for making this, I learn a lot of things, I don't really know how to put it into words, but it was important, I won't forget about it.

[@Josh-ez5hf]

Is there any way to contact you on a business email? I was wanting to ask a question about a fantasy book I believe you mentioned on your Star Wars reviews

[@CardinalWest]

You can dm me on Twitter @cardinal_west

[@fredjohnson9833]

I have to add this to my reading list now

[@zalogiannis]

Anybody know where I can read this book? I can't find any physical or digital copies. Prefer physical copies in general though.

[@columbialego1083]

The crazy thing about the novel is that the storyline of it is dark and savagely violent compared to the film. And I thought the story of The Cunning Little Vixen is messed up. Surly I love foxes because they are such beautiful animals

[@556deltawolf]

Is there a way to read this book without having to pay 300 dollars for a copy? (No joke they are that expensive)

[@CardinalWest]

The ebooks on Amazon should be only 7 or 8 dollars.

[@556deltawolf]

@@CardinalWest Ah okay. I don't have a kindle app though.

[@accountreality1988]

@@CardinalWestare you aware of any audiobooks?

[@abrahemsamander3967]

Congrats on your new book.

[@charliemacsart]

Fantastic video!

[@raeandringa7260]

WOW. WOW!!! I had no idea a depressing movie was sooooo much more depressing in the source material! I guess it makes sense, but WOW!

[@rebeccacook8149]

Haha I was recommended your plague dogs\wd vid, watched it, then this came next. Was surprised to hear the intro music, checked the description and yup, that's my most frequented sleep music album.

[@eg-draw]

I just started to watch the video but just in case it wasn't mentioned I would recommend to read "Hunter's Moon" by Garry Kilworth. Because I'm pretty sure it has a lot of common with topic of the video. And also it's just a great book. I loved it as a kid.