While many medical advances such as vaccines, analgesics, and dialysis have involved animal research, the practice is controversial for a simple reason: we experiment on animals because they are like us, yet this likeness may imply that we’re wrong to use them. This essay discusses the ethics of animal research, by considering three common defenses of it and some responses.
Tag: animals
Animal Minds
It’s natural to believe that many nonhuman animals think and feel—and therefore have minds—but it’s important to consider whether these beliefs are justified. This essay explores animal minds, the challenges involved in studying them, and why such study matters.
Speciesism: Discrimination on the Basis of Species
Speciesism typically involves prioritizing the interests of one’s own species over other species’ interests: because animals are not of our species, we may treat them in ways we would never treat human beings. Most people seem to accept speciesism. However, some philosophers argue that speciesism reflects a biased prejudice for our own group, similar to racism and sexism. This essay explains different versions of speciesism and the objections they face.
The Moral Status of Animals
This essay presents a range of viewpoints on the ethics of human-animal relations and some of the reasons in support of each view.