Watership Down (#3)

Pages: 209-300

Favorite Quote: "'Animals don't behave like men,' he said. 'If they have to fight, they fight; and if they have to kill, they kill. But they don't sit down and set their wits to work to devise ways of spoiling other creatures' lives and hurting them. They have dignity and animality'" (249).

What a topsy-turvy quote! We usually associate humanity with civility and being above animalistic urges, but here, the rabbits are talking about how their animality is dignity above human's malicious tendencies. This is another example of how Watership Down brings out human traits to be scrutinized in a fashion that books with human characters cannot. This quote is advocating simple, need-based actions as the more dignified, noble way of life. Maybe intelligence is overrated. Maybe it corrupts some humans to the point of misuse, and is therefore not an asset to humanity.

However, I think that there's another side to this higher intelligence coin. At one point, Hazel is speaking with Holly about the does as if they are just breeding fodder, and "ideas of protection, fidelity, romantic love, and so on" (260) never cross their minds. Humanity can use their intelligence and ability not to have to only do need-based actions for good. At least, People usually think of love as a good thing. But, Hazel and the other rabbits have probably only ever encountered humans on the wrong end of the gun, so this point about spoiling other creatures' lives is from a rabbit perspective. But, the reader can still take it as a warning of sorts, making us beware of victimizing others, reaping benefits the expense of others.

Hazel's really grown in this book. Starting as a young buck, raring to charge straight forward into things, he now has a method to his madness, more wisdom to temper his actions. He has now started to listen to what Fiver says, and thinks actions through as well. As a leader, he's developed wonderful qualities along their journey. He is now able to organize others, reading what they need most at the moment and assigning tasks to the best suited rabbits among them for the job. This leadership he's developed shows through in how the other rabbits treat him. He now commands loyalty from them even in times of hardship and they listen to his suggestions almost all the time, only requiring other encouragement at other instances. This character development is quite nice to follow, almost like an abbreviated version of a teen growing up.

Hazel's policy of helping out other animals that are not rabbits to gain their future support is rather interesting. He starts out with a mouse, but then gains the support of Kehaar, a black-headed gull. It's almost non-rabbit like behavior, borderline human. This fits in with Hazel's group of rabbit's tendency to adopt different, atypical behaviors to survive their situations, like digging burrows when the does usually do. However, with the warren they encounter, Efrafa, we see this has gone too far. Originally started out as a system to avoid any misfortune brought about by humans, Efrafa has a very militaristic society. The dictator, General Woundwort's, system is crumbling though. Overpopulation is forcing lean times on the warren, and the forced compliance of all the rabbits makes it as almost they are not living a life at all. Fiver references the poet rabbit in Cowslip's warren, talking about he had seemed dead even though he was alive physically. He knew where he was going, but it wasn't in this world. He had to pay a price for knowing though, and so his fatalistic poetry reflects the anguish and despair he feels from different pieces tearing within himself. Fiver and the rest of the rabbits are contemplating what it means to be alive, what an existence constitutes. Rather interesting, if I do say so myself.

Rating of the book so far: 10/10 (not to say that I'm lenient with rating books, but the ones I've read so far have been really good)