Animal Welfare and Animal Rights

Authors Cass R. Sunstein and Martha C. Nussbaum discuss the legal and philosophical sides to animal welfare and animal rights in their book Animal Rights: Current Debates and New Directions. As editors of this compilation of essays, they introduce the ideas of animal welfare advocates, who argue for stricter animal cruelty prevention laws, and those of animal rights activists who object to any and all use of animals for purposes of entertainment, such as zoos and rodeos, or hunting, scientific experimentation, and agriculture. 

One of the arguments put forth in Sunstein’s and Nussbaum’s book includes the piece Animal Rights: One Step at a Time by Steven M. Wise, who argues that man is not superior to animals, and animals are not property of mankind, so they should not be used or exploited for the benefit of humans. The author draws a parallel with slavery when he explains that “We can still learn from history the invaluable lesson that an enormously powerful evil can be overcome. The first, most crucial, step will occur when judges begin recognizing that at least some nonhuman animals are entitled to recognition as legal persons.” 

He also writes that mankind has always felt superior to animals, and he states, “The idea that everything existed for the sake of humans was a core belief of the highly influential ancient Stoics, first in Greece, then in Rome, and was found in the Old Testament, law codes and other ancient law,” and he continues, “non humans were literally made for us. Savage beasts fostered our courage and trained us for war. Singing birds existed to entertain us. Cows and sheep kept our meat fresh. Lobsters fed us and provided us with exercise by cracking shells that doubled as nifty models for body armor. Lice made us adopt clean habits.” This could explain the general attitude of some people, like bio-research scientists who believe that experimentation on animals with sophisticated cognitive abilities, such as chimpanzees is not a criminal act.

 Further illustration of this point is that the majority of ancient Stoics believed that animals had life, could physically feel, had impulses, but they did not believe that animals had emotions, could act out with intentionality, could reason, believe, or had any memory except from the present. 

It is complicated to declare which animals should be given rights comparable to those of humans. Generally, animal rights activists contend that animals with higher cognitive function and highly developed nervous systems should be completely protected by state and federal laws against animal cruelty in the areas of bio-medical experimentation and intensive farming.

But there are people who do not agree with animal rights activists. As Richard A.Posner illustrates in his essay, Animal Rights: Legal, Philosophical, and Pragmatic Perspectives, the counter-argument that some people will have is that just because humans and some animals share DNA, does not mean that people are indebted to them. Emotional attachment to animals, and sympathy towards their pain is mistakenly channeling animal happiness to human happiness. Moreover, he adds that principles and decency are in the forum of public opinion. 

Values and beliefs are individual to each and every person, culture, and community, but it is a fact that animals with high cognitive brain function feel pain, suffering and emotion. Any type of situation where animals are subject to cruelty and loss of freedom should be forbidden. Posner concludes his essay with a very positive suggestion: “If enough people come to feel the sufferings of these animals as their own, public opinion and consumer preference will induce the business firms and other organizations that inflict such suffering to change their methods.” And a basic duty of all humans should be to provide all animals with a safe, healthy, and happy life.

Posner, Richard A. “Animal Rights: Legal, Philosophical, and Pragmatic Perspectives.” Animal
Rights: Current Debates and New Directions, edited by Cass R. Sunstein, and Martha C.
Nussbaum, Oxford University Press, 2004, pp.51-78.
Sunstein, Cass R., and Nussbaum, Martha C. Animal Rights: Current Debates and New
Directions, Oxford University Press, 2004.
Wise, Steven M. “Animal Rights: One Step at a Time.” Animal Rights: Current Debates and
New Directions, edited by Cass R. Sunstein, and Martha C. Nussbaum, Oxford University
Press, 2004