An introduction to animals and political theory
By: Alasdair Cochrane
Series: The Palgrave Macmillan animal ethics series
Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan
Published: 2011
Place of publication: New York, NY
Language: eng
Number of pages: 167
ISBN-13: 9780230239265
Description: How should political communities govern their relations with animals? Are animals owed justice? What might justice for animals involve? In this book the author introduces the most prominent schools in contemporary political theory such as utilitarianism, liberalism, communitarianism, Marxism and feminism, and examines their implications for issues such as meat-eating, intensive agriculture, animal experimentation, religious slaughter and hunting. The book explores the debates and discusses controversies over what makes an entity worthy of justice: is it rationality, the ability to contribute to society, sentience, or something else? It also introduces and engages with debates about what our political obligations to animals might entail: is it simply not to cause them unnecessary suffering, or do we have much more demanding obligations not to kill, own, or even use non-human animals?
Notes: Includes bibliographical references and index.
Table of contents: title: Introduction : animals and political theory; title: Animals in the history of political thought; title: Utilitarianism and animals; title: Liberalism and animals; title: Communitarianism and animals; title: Marxism and animals; title: Feminism and animals.