Understanding Animal Ethics: Perspectives and Philosophies
Exploring the complexities of animal ethics, this content delves into various viewpoints on how we should treat animals, ranging from Stoic and Christian ethics to Immanuel Kant's moral autonomy and utilitarianism. Discussions on moral considerations, duties towards animals, and the importance of compassion shed light on the interconnectedness of ethics across different philosophical frameworks.
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ANIMAL ETHICS How do we use animals? Is it morally indifferent, right, bad?
Why to care for relationship to animals? 1) We can t wait till the problems in human ethics will be resolved 2) Matters are connected 3) It is a matter of interest
Three basic disagreements about ethics: 1) Who shall we take into moral consideration? 2) How to apply the principles? 3) Why shall we behave morally?
Who shall we take into moral consideration? In distant history: Our family, friends, tribe, fellow citizens x strangers, aliens
Stoics The idea of logos reason, speech, The uniqueness of humankind - we all share access to reason (logos). Reason: make us rational, is common to us we are all citizenships of Cosmos we are all brothers we should take into moral consideration all people
Christian ethics Stoics prepared the way for Christian thinking. We are all part in one big family. Galatians 3.28: There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
Immanuel Kant Man is: a legislating member in the universal kingdom of ends. a rationally self-conscious being Moral autonomy: a person is able to prescribe a law unto him/herself Cruelty to animals: a violation of a duty in relation to oneself Man has the imperfect duty to strengthen the feeling of compassion, since this feeling promotes morality in relation to other human beings. But, cruelty to animals deadens the feeling of compassion in man. Therefore, man is obliged not to treat animals brutally.
Utilitarianism A view that moral agents have one fundamental obligation: to maximize nonmoral value. Value or utility is identified with happiness or preference satisfaction.
Jeremy Bentham (1748-1832): is widely regarded as one of the earliest proponents of animal rights, and has even been called as "the first patron saint of animal rights". society s goal ought to be the greatest happiness for the greatest number of individuals Happiness x pain animals can feel pain The question is not, Can they reason? nor, Can they talk? but, Can they suffer?
Albert Schweitzer Reverence for life Ethics in our Western world has hitherto been largely limited to the relations of man to man. But that is a limited ethics. We need a boundless ethics, which will include the animals also . The time is coming when people will be amazed that the human race existed so long before it recognized thoughtless injury to life is incompatible with real ethics.
A contemporary situation We know that animals can suffer but we don t take it seriously and use animals as means in still more cruel ways We traditionally believe that we are superior to animals and thanks to this fact we believe it is morally permissible to use animals as we need
Using animals Animal experimentation for medicine, psychological, military experiments testing of cosmetics and household products In 2011 almost 1,5 mil. of laboratory animals were used
One example of the most absurd and most useless experiments In Sweden, in a bid to study the long-term effects of nicotine exposure on the brain, 30 rats were injected with nicotine 15 times over a three-week period. After a seven- month period of not receiving any nicotine, the rats were injected with nicotine again every day for one week. The animals were subjected to weekly behavior tests in which their movements were monitored while they were put inside a box for 30 minutes. At the end of the experiment all of the animals were killed and their brains dissected. (Conducted at the University of Gothenburg, supported by the Swedish Medical Research Council).
meat milk
Using animals for entertainment fur hunting circuses zoos
Ethical position Do any nonhuman animals have a prima facie right to life or a prima facie right not to be made to suffer at human hands? Can we give any reason except for our feelings and compassion? How shall we behave to animals?
Ethical reasons for taking animal seriously (1) They can feel happiness and pain. Generally it is wrong to cause pain (exceptions can exist). (2) We are not superior. The whole system of using animals is in principle wrong despite the fact we cause or not pain. (3) Capacities of animals
(1) Animals can feel happiness and pain. Peter Singer: A Book Animal Liberation preference utilitarianism
Peter Singer We should base our ethics on the interest of sentient creatures. Pain is bad, it is wrong to cause intense pain unnecessarily. Human are not superior to animals. We are different. Factual equality does not exist even among humans. Equality is a moral ideal and a moral norm. Speciesmus = assignment of moral consideration to individuals solely on the basis of their species membership.
(2) The whole system of using animals is in principle wrong Tom Regan Book The case for Animal Rights Animals are subjects-of-a-life
Tom Regan individuals are subjects-of-a-life if they have beliefs and desires; perception, memory, and a sense of the future, including their own future; an emotional life together with feelings of pleasure and pain; preference- and welfare-interests; the ability to initiate action in pursuit of their desires and goals; a psychophysical identity over time; and an individual welfare in the sense that their experiential life fares well or ill for them, logically independently of their utility for others and logically independently of their being the object of anyone else's interests.
(3) Capacities of animals discovered by ethologists
Animals are able of: Reciprocity Fidelity Love
They have developed social relationships, friendships They can suffer from loneliness, boredom, fear, frustration, lost of partners They miss their families
Animals are in many ways more like us Ethologist Marc Bekoff A close relationship is critical to our own well-being and spiritual growth.
Animals are subjective beings who have feelings and thoughts, and they deserve respect and consideration. We don t have the right to subdue or dominate them for our selfish gain to make our lives better by making animal s lives worse. Further, as self-conscious, sentient beings ourselves, we are able to recognize suffering, and we are obliged to reduce it whenever we can. Mark Bekoff
Consequences? Mark Bekoff: Clearly, we know a lot about animal emotions we need to turn our knowledge into action. Two positions: one stronger, one weaker: (1) animal rights - animal liberation (movement) (2) animal welfare
Animal Rights and Animal Liberation Animal Rights is the idea that non-human animals have similar interests as humans and that they have at least a right not to suffer. We should take animals as persons not as property Animal Liberation is a movement developed by Australian philosopher Peter Singer.
Accepting the doctrine of animal rights means: No experiments on animals No breeding and killing animals for food or clothes or medicine No use of animals for hard labour No selective breeding for any reason other than the benefit of the animal No hunting No zoos or use of animals in entertainment
Animal welfare Well-being of animals: We can use animals but we should care for them with passion. We should reduce the number of used animals.
Standards of animal welfare Longevity Disease Immunosuppressant Behaviour Physiology Reproduction Absence of boredom
Five freedoms 1.Freedom from hunger or thirst by ready access to fresh water and a diet to maintain full health and vigour 2.Freedom from discomfort by providing an appropriate environment including shelter and a comfortable resting area 3.Freedom from pain, injury or disease by prevention or rapid diagnosis and treatment
4.Freedom to express (most) normal behaviour by providing sufficient space, proper facilities and company of the animal's own kind 5.Freedom from fear and distress by ensuring conditions and treatment which avoid mental suffering
Guiding principles for using animals for experiments Three Rs Replacement: alternative methods Reduction Refinement: Animal distress (i.e. pain/discomfort)
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