Because of its reputation, the rat is generally considered to be a harmful invader of the human species. Humans will use their creativity both to exterminate the rat and to spread a negative image of it. However the rat’s positive image is gradually rehabilitated through domesticating and fiction.

… to a rehabilitated domestic animal

The irony was this desire to exterminate and control the rat that led to its domestication and rehabilitation in human society. According to the AFRMA (American Fancy Rat and Mouse association), rat domestication began in London in 1840. At that time, morbid spectacles were organized with wild rats captured to fight dogs to death in ratodromes [1]. At the same time, the profession of “ rat catcher ” was created in order to stem the proliferation of rats. One of these rat catchers, Jack BLACK, bred rats with special physical features (coat color). He tamed them and offered them to famous personalities such as Queen Victoria. However, large-scale domestic breeding began with Mary DOUGLAS, nicknamed “ the mother of rat fancy. ” [a] Founded in 1895 in England, the National Mouse Club became the National Mouse and Rat Club in 1912. The aim was to promote the hobby breeding of domestic rats, the “ fancy rat. ” It was the first organization fully dedicated to pet rats. But by the 1920's, the pet rat was out of trend.

Then, it was the Punk culture which once again adopted the rat as a pet. As well as rats, punks were considered pests because of their lifestyle. They were also symbols of rebellion against the oppression of society, and made the rat their companion in rebellion. With domestication, the image of the parasite was reversed to become that of a rebel fighting for a better society. In Banksy's work, the rat is a recurring symbol of rebellion. Not only is it an anagram of the word “ art ”, it is also an allegorical tool used to give a voice to the downtrodden of human society, to all the discredited. In his 2004 work, entitled Because I'm Worthless [14], the artist personifies the rat with humor. The rat appears to be in full protest, wearing a peace and love collar and standing with a sign in its hand. The rat is painted in black stencil, while the inscription “ Because i'm Worthless ” is drawn in bright red dripping with blood.

The rat's repulsive physique becomes a source of fascination and a synonym for beauty, which eventually leads to coexistence with the rat, becoming a pet. The image of the rat is gradually being rehabilitated, and its reputation as a pest is being turned on its head in fiction.