Artifacts

Each of these toys has features resembling those of human babies. Attributing positive human qualities to things that are not human makes them very appealing to us. Toy manufacturers know this and regularly anthropomorphize their products. Nature has endowed baby seals with features reminiscent of those of our own young, providing an evocative image for the use of anti-sealing activists.

Stuffed toy Rudolph Canada, 1950s Gift of William McBurney, Ottawa, Ontario (Canadian Museum of Civilization, 998.34.11)

	Toy seal pup and related advertisement 1999 Ganz, China The "Love Is" theme underscores a major obstacle faced by the sealing industry. (Canadian Museum of Civilization, 1999.194.3-4)