Animal rights and wrongs

The fight for animal rights in 18th-century England was long and drawn out, but ultimately fruitful.

By ELANA KIRSH
dog book 88 224 (photo credit: Courtesy)
dog book 88 224
(photo credit: Courtesy)
For the Love of Animals By Kathryn Shevelow Henry Holt 368 pages; $27.50 Though religion is probably not the first thing that comes to mind when one thinks of animal protection, Judaism definitely gets a better rap than Christianity in this flowing narrative of the rise of the animal rights movement in 18th century England. In many of the stories that American writer Kathryn Shevelow uses to paint the picture of the often frustrating tale of the fight for non-human animal rights, she points out that scriptural references came more often from the Torah than from the New Testament, which tends to see animals as existing to fulfill human needs than as fellow beings. While far from religion-based, For the Love of Animals: The Rise of the Animal Protection Movement brings up serious moral and ethical questions that traditionally society has looked to religion to solve, especially in this era and region. How do animals experience pain? Do they suffer? Are they equal to humans? Do animals have immortal souls (obviously working on the assumption that humans do)? And, most importantly, are animals entitled to rights, and, if so, which rights? Leading on from this, the central theme of the book essentially focuses around the question of whether or not animals should be protected by the law. Before getting into the legal battles, Shevelow, a respected academic expert on 18th-century British literature and culture, spends a significant portion of the book making sure that the reader understands just how necessary the fights were, and it's really nothing short of gruesome. From vivisections (dissecting animals while they're still alive) to cutting off animals' hooves for entertainment, from bones sticking out of overworked horses to battered circus monkeys, even the most hard-core carnivore will question human interaction with animals after getting through Chapter 2. The animal stories Shevelow offers, however, are not all depressing - to the contrary, some are quite uplifting. Not at quite the same level as James Herriot's classic All Creatures Great and Small, but enough to elicit a smile here and there nonetheless. Eccentric parliamentarians with zoos of exotic companions and 18th-century Englishwomen who care more for their lapdogs than for their husbands keep the plight of animals at the forefront of the reader's mind. As well as these anecdotes, Shevelow ties in many artistic references, complete with pictures, and excerpts of various poems and significant speeches, which both keep the narrative moving and give it context. With the French Revolution raging across the Channel, the animal rights movement was born in a tumultuous period of change. One of the new and unusual concepts that surfaced during this period, presumably picked up somewhere along the way in England's worldwide conquests, was that of reincarnation. Though not accepted by the church, it did appear to have a significant impact on the way people thought of animals, even if they didn't entirely believe it. For starters, if souls are recycled between all beings, then (mostly) women's "irrational connections" with "dumb brutes" could be justified - animals could indeed be seen as equal to humans. The "chain of beings," as it were, would in fact become more of an interlinked circle if the precepts of reincarnation were accepted. More significantly still, if any animal may, in a previous life, have been a human, then eating meat is in fact equal to cannibalism. The animal rights movement does not, in For the Love of Animals anyway, go so far as to suggest that animals have the right not to be eaten - this is no Peter Singer. It does, however, briefly look at possible health benefits of not consuming flesh and the history of vegetarian diets in England, as well as bringing in a few interesting vegetarian characters. Religion comes into play again as the question of whether or not permission from God to eat animals after the Flood was in fact justification for doing so. An interesting idea on the topic, though probably too idealistic for public consumption at the time, was the call for humanity to strive to be like people were before the "Fall," which is briefly brought up along the way to the big hurrah. It must be said, the core story narrated here is often tedious, though this is more of the fault of history than Shevelow herself. The chapters dealing with the battle to legislate for animal protection feel like a constant build up, let down, build up, let down, so one can only imagine how frustrating it must have been to be involved in the process itself (not to mention an animal in the era of bullbaiting, cockfighting, animal experimentation and the like). Nevertheless, the stories Shevelow tells make the book an enjoyable and emotional read, assuming you're rooting for the furry guys. By the end of For the Love of Animals, having met such significant characters as the scientist Sir Isaac Newton, the writer Margaret Cavendish and the artist William Hogarth, the reader is thankfully granted the relief of witnessing the first piece of animal protection legislation - the Ill Treatment of Cattle Act, 1822. One of the many heroes of the drawn-out battle to pass the bill, Richard "Humanity Dick" Martin, adds to the spicy cast of reformers, having once challenged a fellow Irishman to a gunfight to avenge the killing of a dog. For the Love of Animals, Shevelow's third book, has been widely and deservingly praised, and is well worth the read.