From the Greek language (anthrōpómorphos) to Latin (anthropomorphos) and then to our language: that was the etymological path of the anthropomorphic term. That Greek word is the result of the sum of two clearly differentiated elements such as the following:
-The noun “anthropos”, which can be translated as “human being”.
-The word “morphe”, which is synonymous with “figure”.
The concept allows us to qualify what has a human aspect or form.
The idea of anthropomorphism, for its part, refers to the granting of human characteristics to an object, a plant or an animal. It is a common resource in the field of cinema, television and literature.
The Mickey Mouse, for example, is an anthropomorphic character. Despite belonging to the species of mice, he walks upright, speaks and wears shoes. By its shape and its qualities, therefore, it resembles a human being.
We can precisely underline that there is an important interaction between the concept of anthropomorph and cinema. So much so that there is a genre or subculture that is called furry fandom and that revolves around what are anthropomorphic fictional characters.
In the same way, it should not be overlooked that there is a large list of anthropomorphic characters that are already part of our cultural heritage. Among them we can highlight some such as the following:
-Donald Duck as well as his girlfriend, Daisy, the so-called Uncle Gilito and the nephews.
-The little mouse Minnie, Mickey’s girlfriend.
-The characters of the movie “Ice Age” (2002).
In the same way, we cannot ignore that within what is children’s cinema is where more anthropomorphic characters can be found. A good example of this is that most animated films revolve around figures of this type or, at least, have some that are.
In this way, they range from films like “Cars”, where the protagonists are cars that speak and carry out human activities, to others like “Madagascar”, where the animals in a zoo are the ones that dance, speak and travel as they can do it man.
Anthropomorphism also usually appears when talking about aliens. Frequently, these beings are imagined anthropomorphic, with a head, two arms, two legs and other typical characteristics of man. Mork, the alien character played by Robin Williams in the television series “Mork & Mindy”, is an example of an anthropomorphic creature.
According to the dictionary of the Royal Spanish Academy (RAE), the anthropomorphic adjective is also used in zoology to describe primates that are part of the group of catarrhines (they have nostrils separated by a septum and with an opening downward facing) and lacking a tail.
The chimps, the bonobos, the gorillas and orangutans are apes. Because of their bodies, these animals are very similar to the members of the Homo sapiens species. In fact, they all belong to the hominoid superfamily.
