CineTrek #5: Hold Your Horses & Read About the Parasaurolophus!

The Natural History Museum, had a wide array of natural art. The word "natural" meaning that there is already an established history before mankind. This museum cherishes the past and has a deep investment in history with a curiousity about the natural world. Walking through the building and looking at all the different exhibits really emphasized and capsulated on the idea that these creatures were once real. These figures felt so alive that I wanted to come back in the evening for a Night at the Museum. The curiousity associated with each extinct figure and the relationship they have to global history is evident in their portrayal of their natural forms.

Sir Richard Owen declared that the museum should be free to visitors and therefore accessible to all (Natural History Museum). Victorian explorers discovered exotic animals and plant species from all around the British Empire and Owen wanted these findings to be reflected upon in a building big enough to represent what he called a “cathedral to nature” (Natural History Museum). Allowing this museum to be free, allows for every day visitors to reflect upon international findings, but also to further understand and learn about the folklore associated with each piece, and the narrations that belong to it.

Going through the museum, one of my favorite pieces was discovered by entering the room full of dinosaurs. It was a skull of the Parasaurolophus. The Parasaurolophus is known for its warning signals. It would use its huge head crest as a visual warning signal to let the herd know of danger. The crest was hollow and the Parasaurolophus might have blown air through the it to trumpet the alarm. Now if you ask me, this sounds a lot like this guy was just tooting his own horn...

According to the free idiom dictionary, “tooting [one’s] own horn” means to boast or brag about ones own abilities, skills, success, achievements, etc. To further on what an idiom means, it is an expression in which meaning is not derivable from the words used in the phrase. The figurative meaning of the words is different than the literal meaning of the words. In linguistics, meaning is the information or concepts that a sender tends to convey, in communication with the receiver.

The Parasaurolophus acts as a symbol for the future of linguistics and the way idioms are formed. As Rolando Barthes puts it, “signs ought to present themselves only in two extreme forms: either openly intellectual and so remote that they are reduced to an algebra... or deeply rooted, invented, so to speak, on each occasion, revealing an internal, a hidden facet, and indicative of a moment in time, no longer of a concept” (p. 26). The skull of the Parasaurolophus is being represented as a form of curiosity that is replacing the unknown form of language. While words, sentences and this language was not in existence during the era of the Parasaurolophus, it’s skill is being used to promote a symbol in which society speaks on. Whether the Parasaurolophus knows it or not, it promoted an existence of different meanings of words that can be used literally or figuratively.

While this may seem like a far stretch, the Parasaurolophus caught my eye because of the unwritten idiom attached to it. It challenges viewers of the exhibit to use their imagination and to “replace fear of the unknown with curiousity” (Barthes). While it seems almost impossible to know the history of each object in the museum, the amount of unknowns can seem overwhelming. This London exhibit gives blurbs of information to passing audience members by to help interpret the significance of the object, but by doing that allows for the expansion of the projected story. It opens our eyes to the stories that are around us that have a significant role in the history of the world. The ability to attach language, history, curiousity, folklore, and culture into one dinosaur may seem impossible, but again and again I’m proved wrong by the amazement of London and it’s ability to surpass my expectations.

Thanks Parasaurolophus for being as cool as a cucumber, and allowing me to keep my head in the clouds... even though you’ve kicked the bucket I’m going to keep tooting my own horn. The only difference is now I know who to give the credit to for coming up with such a funny saying.