Putting the Horse before Descartes My Lifes Work on Behalf of Animals - Bernard Rollin.pdf

Putting the Horse before Descartes My Lifes Work on Behalf of Animals - Bernard Rollin.pdf



Publication Date: January 14, 2011
When philosopher Bernard Rollin was six years old, he visited an animal shelter and was told about unwanted dogs being put to sleep. The event shaped his moral outlook and initiated his concern for how animals were treated. In his irreverent memoir, Putting the Horse before Descartes, Rollin provides an account of how he came to educate himself and others about the ethical treatment of animals and work toward improvements in animal welfare. Rollin describes, in witty, often disarming detail, how he became an outspoken critic of how animals were being treated in veterinary and medical schools as well as in research labs. Putting the Horse before Descartes showcases the passionate animal advocate at his best. He recalls teaching veterinary students about ethical issues. He also recalls face-offs with ranchers and cowboys about branding methods and roping competitions in rodeos. In addition, he describes his work to legally mandate more humane conditions for agricultural and laboratory animals.
As public concern about animal welfare and the safety of the food supply heighten, Rollin carries on this work all over the worldoin classrooms, lecture halls and legislatures, meetings of agricultural associations and industrial settings, as well as in print. Putting the Horse before Descartes, ultimately, is more than a memoir. Rollin offers a wide-ranging discussion of ethical issues in many settings and he testifies to the myriad ways that people of good conscience accept their ethical responsibility in regard to animals.

Review
"Bernard E. Rollin's autobiography, is foremost, the story of his courageous struggle against animal cruelty and abuse, both professional and personal.... In this book he criticizes scientific ideology for being 'ethics-free' and speaks out against the (then) common denial by scientists of animal pain and consciousness.... Rollin, who now holds a range of illustrious professorships, has been one of the towering figures in animal protection for more than four decades. One can only salute his moral courage, his considerable learning, and his other tenacity in the face of opposition that would have destroyed lesser men."
—The Times Literary Supplement



"[A] mix of often hilarious biography, condensed and readable expositions of his approach to animal rights, and…later accounts of his battle to improve animal welfare in venues as diverse as veterinary education, shelter practices, research, rodeos, and industrial agriculture."
—The Bark

Book Description
When philosopher Bernard Rollin was six years old, he visited an animal shelter and was told about unwanted dogs being put to sleep. The event shaped his moral outlook and initiated his concern for how animals were treated. In his irreverent memoir, Putting the Horse before Descartes, Rollin provides an account of how he came to educate himself and others about the ethical treatment of animals and work toward improvements in animal welfare.

Rollin describes, in witty, often disarming detail, how he became an outspoken critic of how animals were being treated in veterinary and medical schools as well as in research labs. Putting the Horse before Descartes showcases the passionate animal advocate at his best. He recalls teaching veterinary students about ethical issues. He also recalls face-offs with ranchers and cowboys about branding methods and roping competitions in rodeos. In addition, he describes his work to legally mandate more humane conditions for agricultural and laboratory animals. As public concern about animal welfare and the safety of the food supply heighten, Rollin carries on this work all over the world—in classrooms, lecture halls and legislatures, meetings of agricultural associations and industrial settings, as well as in print.

Putting the Horse before Descartes, ultimately, is more than a memoir. Rollin offers a wide-ranging discussion of ethical issues in many settings and he testifies to the myriad ways that people of good conscience accept their ethical responsibility in regard to animals.

See all Editorial Reviews
Product Details
Print Length: 304 pages
Publisher: Temple University Press (January 14, 2011)

Language: English