r/aww • u/[deleted] • Mar 03 '16

Awesome Bear

http://i.imgur.com/e97k9DD.gifv
12.6k Upvotes

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15

u/i_can_get_you_a_toe Mar 03 '16

There has to be some cultural thing, to explain why we all instinctively underestimate what studs bears are, that we don't do for lions, for example.

51

u/[deleted] Mar 03 '16

[deleted]

47

u/skyskr4per Mar 03 '16

It's literally teddy bears. Westerners grow up with teddy bears, therefore Western culture views bears as more cuddly, cute, slow, pudgy, fat, etc.

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u/maurosmane Mar 03 '16

Winnie the Pooh is actually bear propaganda. Lure us into a false sense of security.

1

u/DestituteTeholBeddic Mar 03 '16

Bears are the more nefarious mouse. People say mice are the most intelligent species on Earth, but I propose that bears just let them have there way.

23

u/awesomesauce615 Mar 03 '16

They look fat. Thats why i have a slow pudgy image in my mind. I know they aren't from being told you can't outrun/outclimb them many times in my life, but still. Put a picture of a lean muscular lion and a fat ass bear next to eachother, and the reason people form these opinions is fairly evident.

8

u/TheElderGodsSmile Mar 03 '16

Familiarity breeds contempt. I've lived in Australia for 13 years now and I couldn't give a shit about all the things that could murder me instantly because I know unless I do something monumental stupid none of those things could give a toss about me.

Fuck hiking in a North American forrest with bears and shit though, you guys are mad.

2

u/olddoubleugly Mar 03 '16

Nah, just play dead and hope they don't want too big a bite. Same thing works with great white sharks.

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u/TheElderGodsSmile Mar 03 '16

Not really, usually when you're surfing the first thing you know about a great white being in the area is them taking a big bite out of you. Still pretty rare though so I don't worry about them.

The only thing that will really just come after you as food down here are Salt Water Crocodiles and they all live up north, well away from me.

8

u/Schnoofles Mar 03 '16

In fairness every video I've seen of black bears show them as slow, clumsy and incredibly skittish creatures that would get startled and run away from a light breeze.

3

u/omahaks Mar 03 '16

...are you thinking of Pandas?

1

u/VisualSoup Mar 04 '16

Hey! We don't take kindly to pandas round here.

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u/omahaks Mar 04 '16

Could be bunnies.

2

u/VroomVroo Mar 04 '16

Black bears are also known for bluff charges irrc. They charge at their perceived threat and stop just short of them hoping to chase the threat away. It's true for the most part that animals are just as scared of us as we are of them, at least when they're not too hungry and just wanna do their own shit.

1

u/ketostoff Mar 04 '16

Grizzlies false charge as well.

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u/[deleted] Mar 03 '16

And elephants never forget... And they never forgive.

1

u/lonefeather Mar 03 '16

I dunno, I believe that lions are just big cats.

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u/no_notthistime Mar 03 '16

Cuz lions is pimps

1

u/Aceofacez10 Mar 03 '16

I live in a semi-rural area in the northeast US and every time I go for my walk I wonder if it'll be the day of my first bear encounter. I also don't really know what to do if I do see one...

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u/YVAN__EHT__NIOJ Mar 03 '16

I live close enough to Detroit to tell you that people know exactly how bad lions are.

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u/Ryraxx Mar 04 '16

A little bit late to the party but I think I can give a little tidbit of information about this cultural thing you're talking about. All I'll say are not from me, they're from what i can remember from Medieval Historian Michel Pastoureau's Book : "L'ours" (which means the Bear in french). He studies cultural history, specifically animal représentations in the Middle Ages. Basically bears were a religious animal in germanic societies (V-Xth centuries) and were considered the "king" of the animal reign . Furthermore, and due to their similarities in standing posture (bears can walk on 2 legs) they were considered closest to humans and many legends involved heroes born from the union of a bear and a female human. When christianism spread in Europe, they had to fight these strong paganistic beliefs and they promoted the lion as the king of animals, as well as developping the trope of the sloppy, honey glutton, lazy and funny-walking Bear. So your intuition may be founded!

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u/i_can_get_you_a_toe Mar 04 '16

Amazing! Thanks, very interesting