Political Animals: The Symbolism of World Leaders and their Pets
I had completely different intentions for this article before today, however a notification from CNN prompted quite the cataclysmic shift in what I wanted to write about as my debut work for the Foreign Affairs Review. A photo of North Korea’s Supreme Leader, Kim Jong-un, has taken the internet by storm, one that features him riding, nay galloping, atop a white horse on one of North Korea’s most historically sacred mountains. There was no pretense, no context, no real explanation for these photos, why they are being released to the world, or what they mean, and now they are here, left up to interpretation; or so it seemed.
Kim Jong-un’s horse photos are not alone in their absurdity and non-sequitur qualities, in fact, he is in good company in these lofty attempts at propaganda that essentially are often seen as pre-packaged memes for social media to voraciously consume. Russian president Vladimir Putin is no stranger to his fair share of photos like these, the notorious shirtless horseback riding pictures or even his well-documented affinity for dogs, seen when Turkmenistan’s president gave him a puppy as a birthday gift. Really though, who could forget the viral video of The President of the United States, Donald Trump, attempting to have a bald eagle perch on his arm for what could only be assumed to be a promotional video, only to have it try and attack him halfway through. So, why are these bizarrely entertaining photos and videos of the most notorious leaders in the world and animals so important?
Animals have long been used as symbols of strength, take a look at any painting or statue of a leader throughout history and they’re most likely riding a horse or have a dog by their side; animals can be used to represent power in every way. Flash forward to now, war is not fought on horseback but still we see global leaders using their pets as props to get a message across. Kim Jong Un riding a white stallion through a snowcapped mountain range initially seemed like performance art to me, him attempting to recreate the emotion that lives within the aforementioned famous paintings or statues of world leaders on horseback, and within hours of the photos being released, twitter provided a bevy of comedic commentary. Alas, despite the humor in the photos, the tireless North Korean propaganda did not release these photos to the world without reason. Kim Jong Un’s grandfather was actually notorious for riding a white horse during his days at war, so it’s safe to assume these pictures are meant to evoke that same gravitas associated with past military achievements in communist regimes, and they could potentially even be a warning of North Korea’s military endeavors to come.
Animals can also be used in a more literal means of intimidation, referencing Putin again, the Russian President actually brought his dog to a meeting with Japanese journalists once, the dog proceeded to bark with its hackles raised at the two guests for a few minutes while Putin smiled and even rewarded the dogs treats as it continued to bark. Was this a means of unnerving his guests, or did the Russian leader simply want to show off one of his favorite pets? Whatever the answer is, having your trained guard dog bark at foreign press as the leader of a country with one of the highest murder rates of journalists in the world makes it seem like there was some thought put into his actions.
Finally, if animals can be used as expressions of power or vehicles of intimidation, what does it say about a leader who is, if anything, somewhat afraid of them? President of the United States Donald Trump has had very few noted interactions with animals, which can imply various things about him as a person. The previous examples have shown how horses or dogs can be used as symbols of a dominant leader, but photos of presidents and their dogs can also make them more likable. Photos of the President of Ireland Michael Daniel Higgins and his two gregarious Bernese mountain dogs, Finnish President Sauli Ninistö and his dog Lennu, or even the Queen of England and her corgis are all well known because of how they humanize these leaders and give the general public of pet lovers some sort of commonality between them and the people in power. In stark contrast President Trump is actually the first U.S. president to not have a pet in the White House in 100 years, his explanation being that he is ‘too busy’, and has actually gone so far to say that he feels as though him walking a dog on the White House lawn would be ‘phony’. There is no argument that being president is challenging and time consuming job, and if you watch the news or have any social media, it’s fair to say that Trump is in fact a busy man, although given his past use of diversion tactics to draw away from his antics, it’s surprising that he hasn’t adopted a pet of any kind yet.
Not everyone is a dog lover or animal lover and that’s fine, nevertheless it is videos like when Trump tried to have an eagle perch on his arm until it attempted to attack him, that give off the impression that animals actually don’t like him. This being the antithesis of the aforementioned dramatic horseback propaganda or adorable dogs, it feels like his nonexistent interaction with animals actually comes across as a weakness or even some sort of character flaw.
As someone who has had pets my entire life, I’m potentially biased in seeing the merit of leaders using animals to boost their power, likability, or even simply as propaganda pieces. While the intention of these photos or videos of leaders and animals may be far different than making people laugh, they always carry some sort of relatability to them, and they inadvertently humanize some quite influential, and more concerningly, ruthless heads of state. The next time you see a photo of a leader with any sort of animal, take a second and look past the humor or cuteness, and think what the purpose of the photo actually is.
Banner image courtesy of Jedimentat44 via Flickr.
