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This is a book review of The Animal Ethics Reader- Part X: Animal Law/ Animal Activism. This section consists of a compilation of essays that support many different opinions in regards to animal activism and animal rights.
This section of the Animal Ethics Reader seemed very sporadic and sometimes I found it difficult to tie together similar themes within the chapters or their significance to the section. The other essays included valuable information about different types of activism, suggestions, and what has been effective when reflecting on certain protests, but this essay did not reflect on these points. I do not believe that animal law and animal activism should have been placed in the same section of the book. Although activism has a tendency to stem from the opinion of need for implementation of laws for animal rights, this is not always the case. There were only three essays that analyzed animal law and I feel that more animal law essays should have been included so as to broaden the book’s examples of varied opinions on the topic. This would have been more helpful to me when considering the issue of animal rights.
The essay that I found most compelling was Wise’s article. He thoroughly explained why great apes should be given certain rights because they show evidence of autonomy. Wise uses Kant’s philosophy that one is autonomous if he is able to rationalize to the point that he understands what is right and what he should do. This explanation clarified my understanding of an autonomous being and why an autonomous being is worthy of fundamental rights.
Overall this section was very informative however; inclusion extensive selection of animal law essays would have given both animal law and activism equal signification within the section. As a person who is still developing my beliefs on animal ethics, I felt that this section of The Animal Ethics Reader gave me information from many different standpoints on the issues within animal law and activism. Despite my concerns with the section, I was able to analyze the pros and cons of passing laws on fundamental rights for certain animals, and the ways in which activism is effective or too extreme. I strongly recommend this book to anyone who is contemplating their beliefs in animal rights and wishes to be presented with different opinions of scholars.
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The Animal Ethics Reader
menyok, May 1, 2008
This is a book review of The Animal Ethics Reader- Part X: Animal Law/ Animal Activism. This section consists of a compilation of essays that support many different opinions in regards to animal activism and animal rights.This section of the Animal Ethics Reader seemed very sporadic and sometimes I found it difficult to tie together similar themes within the chapters or their significance to the section. The other essays included valuable information about different types of activism, suggestions, and what has been effective when reflecting on certain protests, but this essay did not reflect on these points. I do not believe that animal law and animal activism should have been placed in the same section of the book. Although activism has a tendency to stem from the opinion of need for implementation of laws for animal rights, this is not always the case. There were only three essays that analyzed animal law and I feel that more animal law essays should have been included so as to broaden the book’s examples of varied opinions on the topic. This would have been more helpful to me when considering the issue of animal rights.
The essay that I found most compelling was Wise’s article. He thoroughly explained why great apes should be given certain rights because they show evidence of autonomy. Wise uses Kant’s philosophy that one is autonomous if he is able to rationalize to the point that he understands what is right and what he should do. This explanation clarified my understanding of an autonomous being and why an autonomous being is worthy of fundamental rights.
Overall this section was very informative however; inclusion extensive selection of animal law essays would have given both animal law and activism equal signification within the section. As a person who is still developing my beliefs on animal ethics, I felt that this section of The Animal Ethics Reader gave me information from many different standpoints on the issues within animal law and activism. Despite my concerns with the section, I was able to analyze the pros and cons of passing laws on fundamental rights for certain animals, and the ways in which activism is effective or too extreme. I strongly recommend this book to anyone who is contemplating their beliefs in animal rights and wishes to be presented with different opinions of scholars.
(3 of 3 readers found this comment helpful)