Birth of Ducks

Donald D. Markstein ddmarkstein at cox.net
Sun Feb 16 19:56:31 CET 2003


>> So, Horace Horsecollar and Clarabelle Cow can date if
>> they want to, either in "innocent, friendly companionship,
>> or in a physical relationship which is a "sick, prurient form
>> of bestiality", but their physical union CANNOT result in
>> offspring.

Then how do you explain the fact that Gus Goose is Grandma Duck's nephew? Or
the fact that Diamond Dick, the jewel thief who impersonated Scottie
McTerrier, a dogface, in "The Old Castle's Secret", is related to the
McDucks?

Quack, Don

Today in Toons: Every day's an anniversary.
http://www.toonopedia.com/today.htm

----- Original Message -----
From: "Rob Klein" <bi442 at lafn.org>
To: <dcml at stp.ling.uu.se>
Sent: Saturday, February 15, 2003 8:02 PM
Subject: Birth of Ducks


> And so, we have our answer: As Barks had Scrooge mentioning that he would
turn
> back into an egg halfway across the "Fountain of Youth Pond", we can
assume
> that the Ducks came out of eggs (not live births (as mammals). I seem to
> remember the Donald Duck book by Marcia Blitz also shows Donald coming out
of
> an egg, as does Marco Rota's story of Donald's life. I have seen many
other
> official Disney media productions showing that Donald hatched from an egg.
I
> have never seen EVEN ONE reference to the Ducks being born live, or being
> mammals.  They have been referred to as "persons" and "people", but I
don't
> believe they have been referred to as "humans". Therefore, I think it is
more
> reasonable to assume that they share characteristics with humans (such as
high
> intelligence, ability to reason, abstract thinking, understanding of
abstract
> concepts, awareness of passage of time/history, etc.), but not the
physical
> traits. if the 2-dimensional portrayals of them in films and on paper
drawings
> is reasonably accurate, they are neither animals nor humans from our
planet.
> They must exist in a "parallel world", and be lifeforms that have
developed
> from filling similar niches in the ecosystems of their world, to some of
those
> filled in our world by animals and humans.  The varying conditions that
formed
> their bodies were later no longer factors in their evolution, but it is
clear
> that for all of the species of our intelligent characters, natural
selection
> later stopped being a factor (just as it has for most humans on our
Earth), as
> thvarious civilisations rose on the parallel Disney planet. The difference
> between that world and our Earth is that on the parallel world, many, many
> different species have evolved into bi-pedal walking, and into intelligent
> beings; developing civilisations, science and thus removing their species
from
> the chain of natural selection.  Even the weak can now live to breeding
age. On
> Earth, it is only humans who have done that. Mickey, Minnie, Mortimer and
the
> other mice are of one species, the "Ducks" are another, dog-like "people"
are
> another, and so on. The large ears of the mice could have come about as a
means
> to regulate heat in a terribly hot desert enviornment. By the time
civilisation
> developed, all the genomes for small ears had been weeded out of the
> population.  But now, as most of the "mice" now lived in cooler areas, or
> hadthe benefits of air conditioning  (or other benefits of civilisation),
the
> heat is no longer a factor in their development. By the same token, as
natural
> selection no longer operates on that population, they will not lose any of
the
> traits they've had since that time. If a new mutation pops up in the
breeding
> population, it cannot take hold, because the changing environment cannot
be
> better adapted to by one trait or another, as the population now uses only
uses
> scientific knowledge of society to adapt, rather than physical traits of
> individuals.  The German Donaldist theory of the Ducks and Mice being
future
> post "nuclear holocaust" mutant forms of current Earth lifeforms (Ernst
Horst?)
> is another reasonable posibility.  That assumes that "humans" died out,
and
> fowl and mammals mutated into more intelligent species, who developed
> civilisations. It is interesting that so very many differentiated species
could
> develop from lifeforms of lower and middle levels of intelligence; to
species
> with high level intelligence (that of our humans), at a similar rate-and
then
> all join together to form a single planet civilisation or society.  Any
> Zoologist or biologist would find this to be highly unlikely.
>
> It is also extremely unlikely that the Mice, Ducks, Dogs, Pigs, etc. are
just
> different "races" in the same species. They are far too different in
physical
> characteristics to have developed that way. They came from VERY, VERY
different
> conditions, and are likely MILLIONS of years apart from the time when they
> could have interbreeded. So, Horace Horsecollar and Clarabelle Cow can
date if
> they want to, either in "innocent, friendly companionship, or in a
physical
> relationship which is a "sick, prurient form of bestiality", but their
physical
> union CANNOT result in offspring. Daisy being aroused by Deltoid Biceppa,
is
> the equivalent of the farm boy misusing the sheep.  Donald should not be
> jealous, he should be worried about the condition of his girlfriend's
psyche.
> The same should be true of Daisy, when Donald loses his heart to all those
"dog
> people".  Because of the need for procreation to continue the species,
there is
> a natural instinctive attractiveness to members of the same species. It is
> conceivable that, if several (effectively)unrelated species mutate enough
to
> become intelligent, and by some biological miracle (VERY, VERY unlikely),
reach
> a similar level of intelligence at nearly the same geological age; that
they
> could potentially participate in the same society.  The odds of such an
> ocurrence are actually billions to one.  But, for the sake of argument
(and
> interesting fictional stories), let us accept that it is, at least
"possible".
> If such were to occur, the members of this society could be colleagues,
friends
> and companions,- but biologically, they could not mate, -and should not
> physically be attracted to eachother!
>
> Don't take me wrongly.  I have not brought up this topic for prurient
reasons,
> or to start an X-rated discussion. I merely want to point out that there
is
> aminimum "threshold of believeability" that is necessary to provide
enjoyment
> of the stories in the "Duck universe". It is much easier to go below that
level
> for the scientist than for the layman "fantasy fans" whose taste can be
> described as "anything goes".  Relating back to the original point; I can
> believe that in this "Parallel Universe", that the Ducks can be
intelligent
> beings, who developed physically as "ducklike beings" due to wet
conditions,
> and an original diet of seeds and insects. I can believe that, even though
they
> have developed into intelligent beings, that they still hatch from eggs.
The
> fact that Barks tells me that Scrooge says he, himself did come from an
egg,
> proves that for me. There is no indication that Scrooge was joking, in
that
> statement. As we have NO EVIDENCE of live biths (like humans), I cannot
believe
> that the Ducks did not hatch from eggs.  Barks' comments that "he always
> thought of the Ducks as humans" was referring to their characters (not
their
> physical characteristics). They are intelligent beings, who have developed
to a
> similar level of intelligence to that of humans on our Earth, and have
> developed a similar level of civilisation and planet-wide society.
Therefore,
> they perform similar actions.  but, they have come from highly different
> environments, and thus, have developed in a quite different manner.  Thus,
> physical comparisons to those of Earth lifeforms cannot be extrapolated.
>
> The amounts of knowledge of the laws of nature we are willing to suspend,
> separate the "pure fantasy fan" and "fairy tale fan" from the "fantasy
fiction
> fan", "science fiction fan", and finally, from the "stodgy, stuffed shirt,
> scientist".
>
> Rob Klein
>
>
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