Abstract
“Animal rights” is principally a modern, western consideration. As a Kantian concept, it assumes that general principles (rights) should be granted to animals in order to define the relationship between humans and animals. The arguments of Tom Regan and Gary Francione are based on a radical (abolitionist) approach to animal rights, but their scope is limited to the most intelligent animals (vertebrates and mammals). The Universal Declaration of Animal Rights adopted a broader approach, including all animal groups with their specific features in a biologically balanced context. A number of questions are still unanswered; the position for a gradualist view of animals and animal rights, and therefore the connection between human rights and animal rights. The Great Ape Project advocates that apes be granted certain rights traditionally reserved for humans, thus focusing attention on the need for a gradualist approach.
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References
Bovet, D., & Chapouthier, G. (2013). Scientific identification and definition of degrees of sensitivity in the animal world. In T. Auffret Van Der Kemp & M. Lachance (Eds.), Animal suffering: From science to law (pp. 13–23). Toronto: Carswell.
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Further Readings
Auffret Van Der Kemp, T., & Lachance, M. (Eds.). (2013). Animal suffering: From science to law. Toronto: Carswell.
Linzey, A. (Ed.). (2013). The global guide to animal protection. Illinois: University of Illinois Press.
Singer, P. (1975). Animal liberation: A new ethics for our treatment of animals. New York: Review/Random House. Further editions 1976, 1977, 1983, 2009.
Acknowledgments
The author wishes to thank Dr. Jean-Yves Goffi for his advice.
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Chapouthier, G. (2016). Animal Rights. In: ten Have, H. (eds) Encyclopedia of Global Bioethics. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-09483-0_22
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-09483-0_22
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