Feline kinesics and proxemics

Academic justification for an affective allegiance…

Victoria: Why keep a cat? Can’t take them for a walk. Not like a dog.

Where they sit...

Florence: You can use a leash to train them.

Victoria: They’re contrary and moody.

Florence: True. But you need to read their moods. And they can change from being sulky to affectionate really quickly. Unlike some humans who take days.

Victoria: And they can’t speak. Dogs at least bark.

Florence: You need to learn cat kinesics. Their body language. Eye contact. Blinking. Head butts. Gentle biting. Playing. And reading their proxemics.

Victoria: Their what?

Florence: Where they sit. Who they look at. And sometimes they turn their back and look the other way.

Victoria: Aha. That sounds like expressing their discontent.

Florence: Well, annoyance and sulkiness.

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Voice-over

Kinesics: the study of body movements as proposed by Ray Birdwhistell. Proxemics: the study of space and positioning described by Edward T. Hall.