Grizzly Man Discussion and Study Questions

1. How did Timothy Treadwell say that he saw himself in relationship to the bears with whom he spent 13 summers in Alaska?

2. Were the grizzlies Treadwell’s friends? What, if anything, do his names for the bears (like “Mr. Chocolate”) suggest about his attitude toward them?

3. What can we make of Treadwell’s celebrity status, his appearances on commercial television programs like “Letterman”?

4. Treadwell claims that grizzlies have been “misunderstood.” Have they? What do you know about the history of these bears?

5. Is there a place for grizzlies in the lower forty-eight states? Why might some groups think so and others not?

6. What attitude does Willy Fulton (the pilot) exhibit toward Treadwell?

7. What does the tolerance of the grizzlies for Treadwell’s presence among them say about them? Were they intimidated by him, do you think?

8. What was Treadwell’s view of nature? Did he see it as a utopian ideal or was he merely naïve?

9. What did Treadwell want? (Transcendence? A religious experience? Celebrity? Protection?) What was he seeking? What kept him coming back?

10. Was Treadwell an activist? An ecologist? An anthropologist? A preservationist?

11. Several of us laughed aloud during the viewing of the film? Recall what made us laugh and comment on those particular scenes? Was the filmmaker’s humor intentional?

12. What does the filmmaker want us to think about Treadwell and his experiences?

13. How does the filmmaker view the relationship between humans and nature? How about Treadwell?

14. How did the Native American Ph.D regard Treadwell and his experiences?

15. What should our attitude toward Timothy Treadwell and Amy be? Was their conduct with the bears “ethical”?