Re: Do wolf-boys walk upright?
loopy (lmm5@cornell.edu)
3 May 1995 19:19:59 GMT
In article <3o5g95$jsn@hippo.shef.ac.uk>, R.W.Scott@shef.ac.uk (Robin
Scott) wrote:
> In a world surrounded by bipedal influences, the child learns to walk upright.
> Does the child instinctively learn to walk upright when not influenced
by its surroundings?
> i.e. for example when it/he/she has been raised by quadrupeds.
Well, there is not much data to answer your question, since "wolf-child"
stories are difficult to verify. However, there is one well-documented
case of a young girl who was raised by wolves in India earlier this
century. She did, in fact, walk on all fours, and though her adoptive
"family" eventually taught her to walk on two feet, she never did it very
well, and when she needed to move quickly would drop down on all fours and
run. Her spine had developed in an "arch" like the spine of quadrupeds. No
lumbar curve.
There is a book that tells her story. I don't remember the title, but I
believe the girl's name was "Kamala" or seomthing similar; and that name
is in the title.
ANother famous book about wolf-children is _The Wild Boy of Aveyron_,
about a similar situation with a boy who lived in France. I don't remember
whether he was able to walk upright or not.
Lucie Melahn
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Lucie Melahn "You may achieve inner tranquility, but you
Cornell University can't escape surface tension." -V.Louise Roth
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