Product Description

A prominent and respected philosopher of animal rights law and ethical theory, Gary L. Francione is known for his criticism of animal welfare laws and regulations, his abolitionist theory of animal rights, and his promotion of veganism and nonviolence as the baseline principles of the abolitionist movement. In this collection, Francione advances the most radical theory of animal rights to date. Unlike Peter Singer, Francione maintains that we cannot morally justify using animals under any circumstances, and unlike Tom Regan, Francione's theory applies to all sentient beings, not only to those who have more sophisticated cognitive abilities.

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A great read!        Rating:

A great read for anyone with an interest in animal rights, in particular Francione's abolitionist philosophy. Being a collection of essays, a lot of the points are covered multiple times in slightly different contexts, which really brings out the coherence and consistency of the abolitionist position. ie For those who might have doubted a point when framed a certain way, in the next section the same point is made in a different way, confirming that Francione was right to take that position all along.

Lost a single star only because I believe it might be slightly academic and too overwhelming for people who are brand new to animal rights issues. As such, I probably wouldn't recommend it as a first introductory book to get someone interested in animal rights. I think it's more for people who are already into the issues and want a deep overview of Francione's philosophy.

VegNews Magazine Review        Rating:

With his simple yet radical notion that sentience alone is sufficient for rights protection, law professor Gary Francione revolutionized the animal-rights position. Pioneered in essays, interviews, and three preceding books, his abolitionist approach is accessibly integrated in Animals as Persons. Perhaps most compelling is his characterization of our confused attitude toward animals: We simultaneously disapprove of unnecessary suffering while maintaining a system that classifies them as property--a status which permits humans to brutally harm animals on an appallingly large scale. Examining a range of mainstream animal-protection approaches, he outlines how these may reinforce animals' property status by working with--and not radically changing--the animal-exploitation system. Francione promotes veganism, education, and other practical alternatives, and reminds readers that in failing to radically and effectively challenge--and not simply reform--our current paradigm, animals will continue to suffer.

Is the ability to do calculus morally better than the ability to fly with your wings?        Rating:

"Animals as Persons" is on the ROROTOKO list of cutting-edge intellectual nonfiction. Professor Francione's book interview ran here as the cover feature on February 1, 2010.

An Excellent Summary of Professor Francione's Thought        Rating:

If the right of animals to not be treated as `things' and used as property is ever taken seriously by future generations, Professor Gary Francione will very likely be seen as the most important thinker to write on the topic.

Gary Francione's ideas are indispensible if animal rights or any meaningful protection of animals is ever to come about. There are various reasons why this judgment is not widely shared today in our society.

First and foremost of those reasons are the deep cultural prejudice, anthropocentrism, and speciesism of society-at-large, including prejudices within the so-called animal 'rights' movement. Professor Francione is an iconoclast who employs careful reasoning from moral principles that most of us already accept to destroy the prejudice and dogma infecting our thoughts, habits, and behavior as they impact sentient nonhuman beings.

A second reason that Francione's ideas are not widely accepted, closely related to the first, is that there is very little money to be made by nonprofit animal organizations in vegan education; but there is plenty of money to be made in what Francione criticizes: welfare reform efforts.

Animals As Persons is made up of seven essays that collectively provide an excellent summary of Professor Francione's thought.

The first essay introduces the reader to his abolitionist theory.

The second essay is a response to various critics who deny that the property status of animals is an insurmountable problem.

The third essay is on how the "similar minds" approach to assessing the moral importance of animal suffering is inadequate.

The fourth essay is a reply to Professor Cass Sunstein's critique of Professor Francione's book, Introduction to Animal Rights.

The fifth essay discusses the two questions of empirical necessity and moral justification regarding the use of animals in biomedical research.

The sixth essay explains why the feminist ethic of care does not provide protection that extends beyond rights and how it is merely another form of new welfarist theory which, like Peter Singer's theory, seeks to provide greater weight to the interests of nonhumans while retaining the hierarchy of humans.

The final essay critiques Professor Emeritus Tom Regan's "lifeboat scenario" and points out how it is more of a problem for Regan's theory of animal rights than Francione originally thought.

Whether you're new to Gary Francione's thought or very familiar with it, I highly recommend this book. It includes enough of the basics in accessible language to be a good introduction to someone new to the topics, while adding sufficient new material that has not been widely published previously for those already familiar with his work to profit from reading it.

Author's Reply to Lataavi        Rating:

I am the author of this book.

A reviewer, "Lataavi" claims that I maintain that vivisection is acceptable if it is necessary.

This claim is false.

In Chapter 2 of the book, I make quite clear that even if animal use were necessary to find cures for human illness (a position that I criticize), such use could not be justified as a moral matter.

"Lataavi" has for whatever reason blatantly and explicitly misrepresented the content of the book.

Gary L. Francione
Professor, Rutgers University

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