150 Year History Of Bigfoot example essay topic

Bigfoot: The Mystery For over a 150 years man has been troubled by one great mystery, a mystery that has baffled all who have witnessed it and all who have tried to solve it. This mystery is commonly known as Bigfoot, a tall hairy man / ape who lurks in the woods in almost every country on this planet. Some say it is just an ape, some believe it is a man in costume, and others are true believers of this hairy phenomenon. For more than a decade and a half this creature of myth has caused enormous contradictions in the field of science, bringing about one question.

Does Bigfoot exist? Throughout the 150 year history of Bigfoot many concerns have raised, the most in number have been from Native Americans. The Karo k Indians tell of an "up slope person" who lurks far up in the mountains (Gaffron, 22-24). Some medicine men have told stories of "snow-walkers" that haunt the Forrest depths (Short).

The creatures North American habitat covers over 125,000 square miles of forest, contained in the states of Oregon, Washington, and California, constituting a large number of Native American tribes to encounter and frighten (Gaffron, 22). This phenomenon is not just a Native American one told by medicine men, and tribe leaders, Bigfoot plays an enormous role in the ancient folklore of such civilizations as, the Russians, Greeks, and Anglo-Saxons (Brunvand). These civilizations have been around for hundreds of years, and have been telling stories of Bigfoot long before any one; they hold the true key to Bigfoot's history. 2 As the environment changes so does the Bigfoot. The Yeti, known as the legendary man of the Himalayas, is the Bigfoot of Nepal, China, and Siberia.

Numerous descriptions state the Yeti resembles a primitive human like being (Gaffron, 52). Four major types of Bigfoot have been recorded, each one having its own distinct differences. The Teh-Ima is 4 feet tall, being the smallest of the four and is located in lower mountain regions. The Meh-The, slightly resembling a gorilla, has a big pointed head and large square teeth, it is slightly larger than the Teh-Ima.

The Due-Teh being the third largest resembles a bear and is approximately six to eight feet tall. The largest of the group is the Bigfoot of North America weighing as much as 1,000 pounds, and over eight feet tall (Gaffron, 44-46). These Big feet have there own characteristics and traits, each one adapting to life in its own region, and each one just as baffling as the other Bigfoot, myth or not has been seen by hundreds of thousands of men and women. These people have given detail of its features and characteristics. Bigfoot is described to have a rancid odor which is smelt from miles away.

It can weight up to 1,000 pounds and it reach higher than eight feet in length (Gaffron, 16). Its footprints tell a lot about Bigfoot as well, from them scientists deduce his extremely wide strides of six to eight feet, the four inch to 24 inch foot size, and the unusual disproportionate width of the ball of its feet (Fahrenbach). With all its obvious differences Bigfoot also shares common traits with primates, for example the hair some bone structure, and a minimum mental capacity. From the United States to China people have reported seeing what they believe is Bigfoot.

These encounters may or may not be true; one cannot know for certain the truth of such questionable things, the only thing that can be done is to keep an open mind. The most common sightings occur in remote regions in northern and southern California, by people claiming to see huge, hairy human-like creatures. Most people that see a Bigfoot 3 don't know what they " ve seen, let alone know it's something worth reporting. These are some examples of sightings which have been recorded. In 1958, while flying a private plane over Bluff creek, a husband and wife see Bigfoot tracks, they follow them until they are above the Bigfoot. On April 16, 1969 Mrs. Robert Be hme sees a Bigfoot limp across a road in Stirling city, California.

In Bluff Creak, California on the year of 1958, Laurence Omega spots a Bigfoot outside his shack, the next day he quits his logging job and leaves town. (web). These are just a minuscule fraction of the sightings reported every day. Is Bigfoot is a common creature roaming the woods or are these people eager for attention? In October of 1967, Roger Patterson and Robert Gimlin took approximately 24 feet of footage containing a female Bigfoot (Thomas). Many scientists immediately struck the film down as a fake, arguing that the Bigfoot in the footage was a person in a gorilla costume. While there were many skeptics, there were also many believers, William Montagna, an expert on primate skin stated that the breasts of the Bigfoot were hairy, therefore it could not be a human female.

Peter Byrne added that apes do not have breasts therefore the theory of it being an ape was ruled out. The most proving statement came from technicians at Universal Studios in Hollywood. The technicians all agreed that it would be impossible to fake the footage; if they were to attempt it, it would require a whole new system of artificial muscles and an actor who could walk like a Bigfoot (Gaffron, 72-76). In the thirty-five years since this footage was taken nothing has been able to prove the existence of Bigfoot more than it has. For thousands of years myths of an upright man / ape have been told in dozens of cultures and for 150 years its sight has baffled science and caused irreversible controversies in its theories. Weather Bigfoot is just another branch of primates or an 4 early form of humanity which failed to evolve; it is the duty of science to seek truth no matter how controversial the findings may be. 5

Bibliography

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Fahrenbach, W.H. "Bigfoot Biology". Bigfoot Encounters. Gaffron, Norma. Bigfoot: Opposing Viewpoints San Diego: Green Haven Press inc. 1989 The Bigfoot Field Researchers Organization.
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Thomas, Roger F. "The Patterson - Gimlin Film". BIGFOOT: Fact or fantasy? 25 May, 2002.
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