Animal Liberation (book)
Foundational text of animal ethics, arguing against speciesism and for considering animal suffering.
Chronology: Unknown – Present
Origins & Early Life
Animal Liberation: A New Ethics for Our Treatment of Animals is a 1975 book by the Australian philosopher Peter Singer. It is widely considered within the animal liberation movement to be the founding philosophical statement of its ideas. Singer himself rejected the use of the theoretical framework of rights when it comes to human and nonhuman animals. Following Jeremy Bentham, Singer argued that the interests of animals should be considered because of their ability to experience suffering and that the idea of rights was not necessary in order to consider them.
Pivotal Works & Achievements
He popularized the term "speciesism" in the book, which had been coined by Richard D. Ryder to describe the exploitative treatment of animals. A revised edition, Animal Liberation Now, was released in 2023. == Summary == Singer allows that animal rights are not the same as human rights, writing in Animal Liberation that "there are obviously important differences between humans and other animals, and these differences must give rise to some differences in the rights that each have." In Animal Liberation, Singer argues against what he calls speciesism: discrimination on the grounds that a being belongs to a certain species. He...
Enduring Legacy & Impact
The historical impact and works continue to influence the modern world.
Source: Wikipedia