For me, Half Brother, written by Kenneth Oppel, seemed to raise some important questions about humanity and what it means to be human. In this novel, Ben, the main character, looks ups the definition of a person, only to find that, according to the dictionary, in order to be a person, you need to be a human. “I tried to think of what made someone a person, the unique things. And it seemed like Zan had all of them” (Oppel 156). This book tells the story of a boy named Ben who’s parents bring home a young chimpanzee, who they name Zan, so his father can conduct a scientific experiment to see if chimpanzees have the ability to learn complex language (American Sign Language) and communicate with humans. Zan is raised like a human in their family, and as Ben’s brother. They become a family, and although Ben’s father continues to see Zan only as a critical factor of his research, Ben soon loves Zan just as if he were his own brother. It soon becomes clear to him that it doesn’t matter that Zan is a chimpanzee and he is a human; Zan is his brother, and they are a real family. Ben’s father does not see it this way. He sees Zan nothing more than an experiment. This relates back to what it means to be human, and how hard it is to see animals and humans as equals. Even though Zan believed himself to be human, because he was raised as one, Ben’s father could not look past the fact that he was a chimp, and when the time came that the experiment could no longer be continued, Zan had to find a new home. This destroyed Ben, as it felt as if his own brother was taken away from him. After reading this book, I would say that to be a person, to have emotions and love and a personality, you do not need to be human. This book helped me have a whole new perspective on being a person while telling a compelling and interesting story that I could not put down.

What I found to be a little confusing about this book was why Ben’s dad abandoned the project. I understood that he was no longer confident in a chimp’s ability to truly understand language, not just words. Zan, the chimp, knew many words in sign language, but Ben’s dad believed he was merely imitating his teachers, and would never be able to actually learn and develop language itself. “Dad nodded. ‘He’s learning words. He’s not learning language’” (234). I thought this was slightly confusing, because I believed that learning words was learning language, but I realize now that there is more to language than just words. Language consists of grammar and mechanics and complex structure. According to Edward Sapir, "Language is a purely human and non-instinctive method of communicating ideas, emotions and desires by means of voluntarily produced symbols.” This shows another perspective on the belief that language is only something that can be learned by humans, which is how I would interpret why Ben’s dad abandoned the project. However, Zan could communicate and express his feelings with humans on some level, showing that perhaps Ben’s father was wrong about a chimpanzee’s ability to learn language eventually, but there was a greater, more powerful theme in this book than science: love.

The novel gave me a whole new insight on interacting with animals. It was interesting to see as the book progressed how Ben’s attitude toward Zan changed drastically. This book touched on the subject of humans cross fostering animals in order to teach them complex language. Overall, Half Brother kept my attention quite well and I felt that the book opened my eyes on new concepts about the equality of humans and animals, and how raising an animal as a human can be life changing not only for the animal, but for the people raising the animal. “I didn’t have a fever anymore, and even though I still felt wiped out, I wanted to be with Zan. I think he was glad to see me. We spent a lot of time just tickling and hugging” (176). There was also a defined plot in this story, in which you grow with Ben, and see his change in character. You become attached to Zan and Ben and at the end of the book, are routing for Ben to help Zan find a place of safety that treats chimps well. The emotion and attachment to characters along with the riveting plot kept me hooked the entire time I was reading this book, and I would definitely recommend looking into this novel.

Half Brother, a novel told with excellent emotion and a riveting plot, told how, as humans, we often fail to see that animals have families, homes, and personalities. They possess many of the characteristics that define us as humans. “Being a person couldn’t just be about how smart or strong you were. But the dictionary said you had to be human to be a person. Maybe the dictionary was wrong” (157). We can all learn from this, which is also why things such as harmful animal testing for products should be ended. Even though animals may not be able to speak or understand human language, they still have feelings, and it is important for us to empathize with and give a voice to those who have none of their own.