Animal Ethics in Theory and Practice

1.5 Unit

The course aims to provoke a critical evaluation of the relationship between people and other animals by starting from a solid foundation in factual information about animal cognition and capabilities, about animals as research subjects, as food, as targets of conservation, as objects for human entertainment, and in complex, often paradoxical relationships with humans. We will survey philosophical thought and principle-based theory about animal ethics, before turning to practical and applied animal ethics. The course will use art and culture as a way to understand the relationship between human and non-human life. Prereq: Students in the MA in Bioethics and Medical Humanities program.