In ERW we have been studying persuasive writing through the subject of animal rights. I never thought about animal-rights being a controversial topic, but after reading several articles on the matter I see now how dedicated individuals can be over animal-rights. Bob Steven's LA Times letter to the editor shocked me. I cannot believe a man got so upset over another man caring for animals! I never questioned that animals were intelligent or had physical feelings, but I have questioned if animals were creatures of emotion. I know that certain species have loyalties or love towards their offspring, but I still don't know the extent to the emotions a animal may feel. I have a strong feeling mammals are "in tune" with their emotions, but what about other creatures like birds, fish, or reptiles? Despite my uncertainties, I have always had a heart for animals and have hated seeing them mistreated. It appalls me how animals have been treated in the past and at times even now. How can people care more about a profit than a living thing. I guess that was a reference to Blackfish and meat companies... On that note, I am an omnivore and love meat. I don't think that makes me hypocritical. I think that is kind of just the "circle of life" "survival of the fittest" or what ever. If the roles were reversed and I was an animal in the wild, I would hope that Homo sapiens would care enough to make sure my specie wasn't extinct or struggling. If I was an animal raised to be someone's dinner, I hope someone would care that I lived a nice animal life and when it was my time, that I would go humanely.
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I agree with your closing statement because that just proves that empathy changes things for the better. We have to put ourselves in their shoes since we all share this earth. People are greedy and take as much resources as we want, but years ago humans took only what they needed. That's how life should work. Species wouldn't be extinct or taken advantage of because we wouldn't be abusing it. Lions only eat when they are hungry. You won't see a lion killing a zebra just to hunt or stock up. I think that's important to apply to our daily lives because even though they are animals, they were made to live like us; To use only what one needs to survive. We have changed that and turned it into something shameful and that is why animal rights have even come to exist
ReplyDeleteI agree with you completely Serena! This is exactly what I was trying to say in my post as well. I feel that if we are raising animals to be consumed, then we should at least give them a happy life to live before we slaughter them for our next meal. I also agree with the point that Amy made as well, that we as humans have started to just take what we want and pay no attention to what it is we need. We tend to over-indulge ourselves which begins to greatly effect our enviornment and the lives we lead. I think we need to slow down and take a step back in life. Speed leads to stress and our desire to have the latest and greatest technology has skewed our minds from what is important: the world around us and everything in it. We get caught up in our toys and gadgets that we don't take the time to appreciate nature and the critters that inhabit it. The world is fascinating and we tend to forget about that when we are all caught up in our daily lives of work, school, college applications, SATs/ACTs, etc... We all just need a real break to rest lol. I know "lol" is not an academic word but it totally fit. So, this response has become quite long, I think I'm going to end it here. Great post and point made Serena :)
ReplyDeleteP.S. I hope I don't get marked down because of that smiley face...
I agree with you as well, but if you were put into the body of a nonhuman animal would you even have the capability to hope or care about what humans are doing to you. I feel that the missing fact to this topic is the presence of emotion in animals and a consciousness on the level of humans. It's true that humans are moving too fast like Ally said, and we need to realize that what we take from the Earth we must also give back. It's all about balance, and nonhuman animals are having to liveive according to the actions we humans take on the environment. If we can't find the answer to their consciousness or cognitive sense, we can at least create a better environment for them to survive in.
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