A woman and a bear on stage

This chapter explores how biographical texts construct scenarios of human–animal relationships through the life and career of German bear trainer Maxi Niedermeyer (1940–2022). The primary sources include Niedermeyer&s;s autobiography Моите най-добри приятели мечките. Разказ на една дресьорка [My Best Friends, the Bears: A Female Trainer&s;s Tale] (1980), which depicts an interspecies friendship through a model of human dominance and control; and the Dutch photographer Loek Buter&s;s photo series A Bear in the Lowlands (2014–2021), which presents an intimate bond marked by vulnerability and care. A juxtaposition of these works reveals a broader shift in narratives about human–animal relations, reflecting evolving ethical discourses and increasing social sensitivity towards animal welfare. The chapter highlights the decline of the once prestigious animal training professions, and the move towards emphasising mutual interspecies entanglements in late modernity.