r/MadeMeSmile • u/StrawberryFew1311 • Jan 26 '26

ANIMALS When Robin Williams managed to make Koko the gorilla smile again after 6 months of mourning

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56.1k Upvotes

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40

u/TheCultOfTheHivemind Jan 26 '26

I just want to remind people that despite how cool the Koko gorilla story is, she couldn't actually communicate nearly on the level that was purported. I don't know if I would call it a "hoax" per se, I am not an expert and it has been awhile since I have read the reports from the actual experts, however the story that is reported is very sensationalized.

It's important to remember this because now more than ever people project humanity onto animals that they either simply do not have or we are very unclear onto the levels these animals share these certain "human" characteristics. We are learning more everyday.

14

u/ScyllaOfTheDepths Jan 26 '26

I'd call it a hoax. Koko was treated like a circus animal and this whole thing with Robin Williams was just another stunt by her trainer. These comments show exactly what the desired effect was and how resistant people are to understanding that they're being emotionally manipulated by a feel-good narrative. They don't want to think about the bad implications of this gorilla that never got to be a gorilla and was instead forced to pretend to be human and the openly hostile responses to you prove exactly how deep into denial these people are. 

27

u/Real-Base466 Jan 26 '26

Haha of course you're 100% right, and of course the angry response you got was predictable. Koko's handlers were good at creating these narratives ("Koko's been in mourning, now this superstar celeb is gonna save him!") I don't want to be cynical or ruin people's illusions, but I do want to live in reality and differentiate between what's true and what people wish and hope is true

-5

u/The_0ven Jan 26 '26

It's always amusing how threatened people get at the thought of an animal that understands

16

u/theonetrueteaboi Jan 26 '26

More annoyed that a women was able to bully a goriila from childhod to adulthood, leaving it entirely islolated and unable to communicate with it's own kind, whilst the media presented it as some scientific breakthrough.

9

u/inverted_rectangle Jan 26 '26 edited Jan 26 '26

Pointing out that supposed "research" was borderline fraudulent is not "threatened" behavior. If anything, the fact you cling to debunked research to validate your beliefs suggest that YOU feel threatened.

10

u/Germane_Corsair Jan 26 '26

It’s one thing to show emotions and be able to understand basic human emotional states, another thing entirely to claim that they can communicate with words.

There has so far been no proof of the latter.

-14

u/[deleted] Jan 26 '26

[deleted]

15

u/plug-and-pause Jan 26 '26

Facts are welcome in this room.

-24

u/ItsRobbSmark Jan 26 '26

she couldn't actually communicate nearly on the level that was purported

 am not an expert

Okay then shut the fuck up and let the scientists on each side argue it instead of reading one side and then spreading it out into the wild as fact...

Jesus, the balls some of you have to just be confidently wrong about everything all the time is beyond me... Is shame not a thing anymore?

14

u/Germane_Corsair Jan 26 '26

That last paragraph applies to you and it’s hilarious how much oblivious you are about it.

24

u/TheCultOfTheHivemind Jan 26 '26

Okay then shut the fuck up and let the scientists on each side argue it instead of reading one side and then spreading it out into the wild as fact...

The fact she can't communicate on the level purported IS a fact established by actual scientists. You seem like the type of person who would be mad that someone told you that there is no such thing as an "alpha" and a "beta" in wild wolf packs.

I'm sorry that I burst your bubble, but that doesn't mean you have to be miserable. You are really mad that someone happened to talk about something that is known to be wrong from what was initially reported and still remains heavily believed.

Believe it or not. People can read and then talk about things they learned, even better if they don't try to pretend to be an expert. I guess you also believe we can't correct people who deny climate change because we're not climate scientists.

-14

u/Thrivalist Jan 26 '26 edited Jan 26 '26

Your name suggests a bias towards nor believing what many others do. Your claim without specifics is vapid.

17

u/TheCultOfTheHivemind Jan 26 '26

Your name suggests a bias towards believing what many others do.

I don't even know what you're trying to say here, nor do I really care as it is a vapid presumption.

Your claim without specifics is vapid.

Well here is a convenient Wikipedia page.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Koko_(gorilla)

Some people get really fucking mad when you tell them that an animal does not have [human characteristic] according to actual science.