My Prehistoric Neverland by Prospero Pulma Jr.

Note: I finished this book review on August 7, 2005, so it's as ancient as its topic - dinosaurs.

My Prehistoric Neverland

Like any normal child, I have learned to memorize the tongue-twisting names of dinosaurs – Tyrannosaurus, Stegosaurus, Brachiosaurus- even before I could spell Homo sapiens and Homo erectus. However, unlike other children who dwelled on fairy tales, my imagination was filled with dinosaurs and frequent visits to a world that vanished millions of years ago- my own Neverland. I was simply mesmerized with the gigantic creatures that I spent long hours poring over books, especially those with graphic illustrations that tackled the extinct animals and more hours glued to the television, watching dinosaurs of course! And like any normal kid with a short attention span, I outgrew my fascination with the reptiles, until Michael Crichton and his wrecking crew of ambitious, greedy humans and hyperactive, cloned dinosaurs came along in Jurassic Park.

It was comparable to a second childhood, a reawakening of my imagination that has lain dormant after my interest shifted to military history and literature. It was a revisit to a past where I would spend fleeting hours enthralled with dinosaurs. Even though I received the standard dose of doctrine that the world was created in seven days from Catholic schools and did not evolve over billions of years as claimed by scientists, I found myself drawn again to creatures that existed eras before man boldly took his first step as Adam and Eve or as Homo sapiens. Michael Crichton’s genius rekindled my interest in the extinct reptiles and in a world entirely different from the Garden of Eden that I have been taught at school. It was a classic case of science and literature contradicting religious tenets.

From the deep recesses of my mind, I unearthed what little knowledge that I had about dinosaurs. I discovered that paleontology has grown by quantum leaps ever since I consigned dinosaurs to the dustbin of my memory to join the other childhood fantasies that I discarded when puberty and reality beckoned to me. Its progress has been rapid that some paleontologists are now claiming that modern birds are the descendants of dinosaurs, the animals were warm-blooded in contrast to the original theory that the creatures were cold-blooded like reptiles, and our avian friends evolved from a different ancestor. Like their fossils that have been entombed and undisturbed for millennia, my imagination stirred to life and was populated again with the majestic creatures.

It seems that dogs are not the only mammals that have a fixation for bones. Ever since man stumbled upon the fossilized remains of dinosaurs, he has been on a quest to discover how the owners of the gigantic skeletons lived, breathed, and perished. And I am proud to have joined the quest, albeit on an inactive and armchair role, which means that I am content to let the poor paleontologists do the digging and wait for them to publish their discovery. Besides, there were no dinosaurs in our country, which would make hunting for dinosaur fossils in our backyard senseless and simply stupid.

It would be interesting to see how dinosaurs and man would behave when if they crossed paths. Both dominated their respective eras, the former through their sheer size and the latter through his superior intellect. And it seems that I am not the only one who is keen on seeing the reptiles meet humans face to face because the topic has been the stuff of many movies and animated shows that I have watched on television even before Jurassic Park became my favorite book.
One question that has been bugging me was how dinosaurs and men would interact. My interest in the subject was borne out of curiosity after reading how man tamed and domesticated wild animals. Even though scientists have already ruled out the possibility of bringing the dinosaurs back from extinction with cloning, they failed to stop me from indulging in my favorite fantasy: dinosaurs coexisting with humans! Several scenarios flashed in my mind, which only spawned more questions rather than answers. Fortunately, Michael Crichton came to my rescue with Jurassic Park.

For example, would it be possible for modern civilization to flourish if man is constantly on the run from dinosaurs? We would still be wearing animal skins and cowering in caves if we have to share this planet with the beasts. Even with the giant animals extinct, our ancestors still had to overcome incredible odds to lay the foundations of today’s world. Competing with the reptiles would be a contest that humanity would never win. Their famous descendants, the crocodiles, are already fearsome predators in their own right. Imagine what our life would be if the extinct beasts are still around to prey on us.

What are the possible consequences if man played God and breathed life into creatures that have been stricken off the list of this planet’s inhabitants millions of years ago? The answer could be found in Jurassic Park. Michael Crichton described how cloning and genetic engineering, the technologies that were used to bring the extinct dinosaurs back to life in Jurassic Park, failed to suppress an animal’s natural instincts and how formidable security systems could be crushed by several tons of dinosaur flesh and a bone - proof that contrary to what his ego is telling him, man can never master nature and his technology is as puny as his body.

Speaking of size, does it really matter? One thing that I have learned from Jurassic Park and dinosaurs is to ponder on man’s mortality. In spite of their enormous bodies and dominating the planet for eras, the dinosaurs still met the inevitable: death and extinction. Man may have conquered the earth, but it is not a guarantee that he will not share the same fate. The clues that the animals left through their fossils told a tale of annihilation not by their own hands while the relics of our existence may probably tell a tragic end for creatures who died by their own folly. Like Ian Malcolm, the cocky mathematician in the novel, I believe that, despite man's best efforts to wreck the planet, the earth will outlive our penchant for self-destruction.

And now to a very interesting question: Who would dominate the food chain? No need for research here as the answer can be gleaned by just looking at a Tyrannosaurus. I consider the parts where T-Rex and company decided to add man to their diet and proceeded to hunt him down for dinner as some of the high points in the novel. It’s not that I enjoy reading grisly accounts of animals dining on humans but the author would not be able to bring me along on a roller coaster ride if he only depicted tranquil scenes of man petting docile herbivorous dinosaurs. As for raising dinosaurs for their meat like livestock, I can’t wait to discover if they taste like chicken. Would anyone care to try a Brontosaurus steak?

Have you noticed how media depicted domesticated herbivorous dinosaurs coexisting harmoniously with humans while the carnivores are ostrasized for being, well, predators? It seems that the meat eaters are also victims of discrimination and stereotyping –standard treatment reserved for members of several religious and ethnic groups - even though they are just following their natural instincts unlike humans who have a flair for displaying aberrant behavior.

Is a dinosaur a figure of authority? According to Michael Crichton, yes. "Children liked dinosaurs because these giant creatures personified the uncontrollable force of looming authority. They were symbolic parents. Fascinating and frightening, like parents. And kids loved them, as they love their parents." Although I have a poor grasp of some of the book's technical details, I disagree with his view of dinosaurs as symbols of authority. On the contrary, I consider dinosaurs as representing nature’s awe-inspiring might, a powerful force that evokes dread generated by man’s awareness of his innate weakness – his frail body. Besides, children see things differently than adults. A child may stare in awe at a dinosaur’s ponderous bulk while a grown-up would be terrified of its oversized body.

And to satiate my childhood curiosity, would dinosaurs make great pets? If they were, then, a stegosaur and triceratops would definitely be on my wish list. But we have to find a way to retard their growth, otherwise, titanium cages have to be built and tons of food would have to be shoveled into their mouths. Just like humans, they are only cute and cuddly when they are young and little.

"Timmy’s got dinosaurs on the brain." Lex teased her elder brother in the novel. Maybe it is just the child in me, but she should needle me too, because I also have dinosaurs in my head. Let’s see - Tyrannosaurus, Stegosaurus and Brachiosaurus- they are all in my mind, roaming in the vast expanse of my own prehistoric Neverland.

- By Prospero E. Pulma Jr.