Murdering Animals

Murdering Animals confronts the speciesism underlying the disparate social censures of homicide and “theriocide” (the killing of animals by humans), and as such, is a plea to take animal rights seriously. Its substantive topics include the criminal prosecution and execution of justiciable animals in early modern Europe; images of hunters put on trial by their prey in the upside-down world of the Dutch Golden Age; the artist William Hogarth’s patriotic depictions of animals in 18th Century London; and the playwright J.M. Synge’s representation of parricide in fin de siècle Ireland. Combining insights from intellectual history, the history of the fine and performing arts, and what is known about today’s invisibilised sites of animal killing, Murdering Animals inevitably asks: should theriocide be considered murder? With its strong multi- and interdisciplinary approach, this work of collaboration will appeal to scholars of social and species justice in animal studies, criminology, sociology and law.

Though not often acknowledged openly, killing represents by far the most common form of human interaction with animals. These multidisciplinary essays reveal the complexity of this phenomenon by exploring the extraordinary diversity in killing practices and the wide variety of meanings attached to them.

Why do people harm, injure, torture and kill animals? This book evaluates the reasons why these crimes are committed and outlines the characteristics of the animal offender. It considers ethical and value judgements made about animals and the tacit acknowledgement and justification of unacceptable criminal behaviour towards the harming of animals made by offenders. Situating animal abuse, wildlife crime, illegal wildlife trading and other unlawful activities directed at animals firmly within Green Criminology, the book contends that this is a distinct, multi-dimensional type of criminality which persists despite the introduction of relevant legislation. Taking a broad approach, the book considers the killing and harming of animals in an international context and examines the effectiveness of current legislation, policy and sentencing. Including a section on further reading and useful organizations, this book is a valuable exploration into perspectives on the responsibility owed by man to animals as part of broader ecological and legal concerns. It will interest criminologists, ecologists, animal protectionists and those interested in law and society and law and the environment.

This title examines the fields of value theory, normative and applied ethics on the issue of killing animals. It addresses a number of questions: Can painless killing harm or benefit an animal and, if so, why and under what conditions? Can coming into existence harm or benefit an animal? Is killing animals morally acceptable? Should animals have the legal right to life? In addressing these questions, animal rights and animal welfare positions are articulated and debated by some of the foremost thinkers on these issues, with a distinction made between rights-based and utilitarian approaches.

Killing animals is common practice, yet it is not morally neutral. The end of animal life is related to many societal and ethical questions and concerns. Questions such as how long should we continue to treat an animal before putting it down? But also the question whether it could be legitimate to kill individual animals for the welfare of the herd or of future generations. The ongoing public and academic discussions on these, and on other well-known questions like those related to the killing of animals for food or for scientific purposes, show that there is no one standard evaluation of animal life. This book is an edited volume that enables the reader to get a grip on that plurality of views with regard to animals. It helps to deal with the many questions related to the end of animal life. The chapters show how the plurality of views on killing animals is related to moral presuppositions by providing a clear overview of the ethical views on end-of-life decisions. Furthermore, the book contains a number of applied studies of the ethical questions related to killing animals in various practices, including small animal practice, wildlife management, fishing and fish farming, animal experimentation and livestock farming. These chapters can help veterinarians, scientists, students, policy makers and many other professionals working with animals to easily get a good overview of the issues at stake, and may contribute to responsible decision-making with regard to the end of animal life.

Porphyry's On Abstinence from Killing Animals is one of the most interesting books from Greek antiquity for both philosophers and historians. In it, Porphyry relates the arguments for eating or sacrificing animals and then goes on to argue that an understanding of humans and gods shows such sacrifice to be inappropriate, that an understanding of animals shows it to be unjust, and that a knowledge of non-Greeks shows it to be unnecessary. There are no Neoplatonist commentaries on Aristotle's Ethics from the period AD 250-600. Thus, although this work is not a commentary on Aristotle, it fills a gap in this series by going to the heart of ethical debates among Neoplatonists around AD 300, and revealing one ascetic Neoplatonist's view of the ideal way of life. It also records rival positions taken on the treatment of animals by Greek philosophers over the previous six hundred years.

Is it acceptable to kill an animal that has been granted a pleasant life? This book rigorously explores the moral basis of the ideal of animal-friendly animal husbandry and sheds new light on utilitarian moral theory by pointing out the assumptions and implications of two different versions of utilitarianism, with surprising conclusions.

Why do people harm, injure, torture and kill animals? This book evaluates the reasons why these crimes are committed and outlines the characteristics of the animal offender. It considers ethical and value judgements made about animals and the tacit acknowledgement and justification of unacceptable criminal behaviour towards the harming of animals made by offenders. Situating animal abuse, wildlife crime, illegal wildlife trading and other unlawful activities directed at animals firmly within Green Criminology, the book contends that this is a distinct, multi-dimensional type of criminality which persists despite the introduction of relevant legislation. Taking a broad approach, the book considers the killing and harming of animals in an international context and examines the effectiveness of current legislation, policy and sentencing. Including a section on further reading and useful organizations, this book is a valuable exploration into perspectives on the responsibility owed by man to animals as part of broader ecological and legal concerns. It will interest criminologists, ecologists, animal protectionists and those interested in law and society and law and the environment.