About: Mistook the Dominant Lifeform   Sponge Permalink

An Entity of Type : owl:Thing, within Data Space : 134.155.108.49:8890 associated with source dataset(s)

So let's say that the aliens land tomorrow. It's not an Alien Invasion (not even a well-meaning one); this group of aliens geniunely comes in peace. After recovering from the initial shock of realizing that, yes, other lifeforms do exist out there, the governments of the world decide to allow them to land -- which they decide to do in your back yard. As the aliens' Flying Saucer lands, the crowd "ooh"s and "ah"s just like crowds do. The hatch opens, and the aliens step out, repeating their message of goodwill -- to your rottweiler. Examples of Mistook the Dominant Lifeform include:

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  • Mistook the Dominant Lifeform
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  • So let's say that the aliens land tomorrow. It's not an Alien Invasion (not even a well-meaning one); this group of aliens geniunely comes in peace. After recovering from the initial shock of realizing that, yes, other lifeforms do exist out there, the governments of the world decide to allow them to land -- which they decide to do in your back yard. As the aliens' Flying Saucer lands, the crowd "ooh"s and "ah"s just like crowds do. The hatch opens, and the aliens step out, repeating their message of goodwill -- to your rottweiler. Examples of Mistook the Dominant Lifeform include:
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  • So let's say that the aliens land tomorrow. It's not an Alien Invasion (not even a well-meaning one); this group of aliens geniunely comes in peace. After recovering from the initial shock of realizing that, yes, other lifeforms do exist out there, the governments of the world decide to allow them to land -- which they decide to do in your back yard. Everyone important shows up -- the President, the news crews, foreign ambassadors, UFOlogists, the mayor, and the local high school marching band. You're there, of course -- it's your yard, after all, and no one's going to evict you just because some aliens are coming to town. Your pet rottweiler is there, too, chained up beside its doghouse and its water dish. As the aliens' Flying Saucer lands, the crowd "ooh"s and "ah"s just like crowds do. The hatch opens, and the aliens step out, repeating their message of goodwill -- to your rottweiler. What happened here? The aliens Mistook the Dominant Lifeform of Earth, that's what. This is a common subversion of the typical First Contact scenario. The aliens, in their studies of Earth, conclude that someone other than humanity are the real masters of Earth. Maybe they assume that we're the servants of our pets rather than mere caretakers. Maybe they're mechanical beings who aren't used to dealing with carbon-based life and assume that any intelligent beings will be machines like themselves. Maybe they assume that the bigger animals have bigger brains, and therefore more intelligence. Either way, the results are usually quite amusing. Granted, the same thing can happen to humans as well. The parrot-like thing riding on that humanoid's shoulder may actually be the master, with the humanoid being its mount. Or it might be that the spaceship itself is in charge, and the aliens disembarking are merely messengers. Many parodies or humorous examples of the trope may include the revelation or implication that the lower animal actually is the dominant or superior species (at least in their own eyes). See also Mistaken for Servant, which is a more mundane trope which sometimes overlaps. Examples of Mistook the Dominant Lifeform include:
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