I ask people why they have deer heads on their walls. They always say, "Because it's such a beautiful animal." There you go. I think my mother is attractive, but I have photographs of her.

In this stand-up style quip, DeGeneres satirizes trophy hunting and the aesthetic justifications people give for displaying mounted animal heads. The joke hinges on a deliberately literal comparison: if beauty is the reason for display, then a nonviolent representation (a photograph) should suffice—just as one might keep a photo of an attractive family member rather than a physical “trophy.” The humor exposes a mismatch between the stated admiration for the animal and the act that produced the decoration, implying that the practice is less about appreciation than dominance, conquest, or status. The line also reflects DeGeneres’s broader comedic persona: observational, deadpan, and morally pointed without becoming overtly didactic.