We need another concept of animals—they are gifted with extensions
of the senses we have lost or never attained, living by voices we shall never hear.
- Henry Beston
Mankind’s true moral test, its fundamental test (which lies deeply buried from view),
consists of its attitude toward those who are at its mercy: animals.
- Milan Kundera
of the senses we have lost or never attained, living by voices we shall never hear.
- Henry Beston
Mankind’s true moral test, its fundamental test (which lies deeply buried from view),
consists of its attitude toward those who are at its mercy: animals.
- Milan Kundera
Vladimir Nabokov begins his memoir Speak, Memory by describing existence as “a brief crack of light between two eternities of darkness.” This is true not only for humans, but for all living beings. Yet, between three and six billion animals are needlessly killed every single day by the food industry on account of the lies, myths, and fictions made up by our society—a worldview that weaponizes human uniqueness through prejudice and anthropocentrism.
This slaughter reveals far less about its victims than about the ones carrying out the slaughter: it says everything, in fact, about their relationship with the world, with nature, and with themselves—whether they choose to understand and respect life, or turn away from it in fear and denial; whether they strive to live in harmony with the natural world, or against it.
The only true path forward from this ongoing destruction has got to be veganism or vegetarianism, neither of which should be reduced to a healthy diet or a mere act of kindness, as they represent profound ways of alignment with life and nature. They are physical expressions of understanding, of valuing the intrinsic purpose in all living beings. As Melanie Challenger writes, “Organisms, in pursuing their goals, make value-based choices. As such, they make our world a meaningful one. In undermining the value of organisms and their agency, we strip our own world of its value too.”
This is a reminder the brief flash of light between two eternities of darkness belongs not just to us, but to all creatures.
This slaughter reveals far less about its victims than about the ones carrying out the slaughter: it says everything, in fact, about their relationship with the world, with nature, and with themselves—whether they choose to understand and respect life, or turn away from it in fear and denial; whether they strive to live in harmony with the natural world, or against it.
The only true path forward from this ongoing destruction has got to be veganism or vegetarianism, neither of which should be reduced to a healthy diet or a mere act of kindness, as they represent profound ways of alignment with life and nature. They are physical expressions of understanding, of valuing the intrinsic purpose in all living beings. As Melanie Challenger writes, “Organisms, in pursuing their goals, make value-based choices. As such, they make our world a meaningful one. In undermining the value of organisms and their agency, we strip our own world of its value too.”
This is a reminder the brief flash of light between two eternities of darkness belongs not just to us, but to all creatures.
Did you know we are part of a long process of emerging life intrinsically connected to the natural world and not a unique creation?
Did you know the gradual metamorphic act of life we are part of also includes animals?
Did you know animals are sentient beings like ourselves?
Did you know scientific studies show animals demonstrate behaviors associated with consciousness, planning, and emotional response?
Did you know animals not only influence the living environments of the planet but also lead “complex lives that involve feelings and mental control?”1
Did you know there are “underlying commonalities in emotional perception and expression” in all mammals?2
Do you think other beings are inferior if they don’t share our way of feeling? Do you believe a different perspective is inferior to yours?
Do you think feeling may in fact mean inwardness, “an experience and a formative power that binds an organism together?”3
Did you know the senses provide a way into the deep knowledge of the ecosystem which both humans and animals are part of?
Did you know urges and preferences are almost always culturally conditioned?
Did you know the gradual metamorphic act of life we are part of also includes animals?
Did you know animals are sentient beings like ourselves?
Did you know scientific studies show animals demonstrate behaviors associated with consciousness, planning, and emotional response?
Did you know animals not only influence the living environments of the planet but also lead “complex lives that involve feelings and mental control?”1
Did you know there are “underlying commonalities in emotional perception and expression” in all mammals?2
Do you think other beings are inferior if they don’t share our way of feeling? Do you believe a different perspective is inferior to yours?
Do you think feeling may in fact mean inwardness, “an experience and a formative power that binds an organism together?”3
Did you know the senses provide a way into the deep knowledge of the ecosystem which both humans and animals are part of?
Did you know urges and preferences are almost always culturally conditioned?
Did you know birds were the first creatures to have dreams?4
Did you know that chickens can recognize up to 100 faces, experience empathy, and form strong social bonds?
Did you know “animals have highly developed neural systems for processing specific informational needs?”5
Did you know the brain of a single honeybee contains nearly a million neurons?
Did you know the midbrain of honeybees “pulls on memory and perception to support behavioral choice?”6
Did you know bats and dolphins are equipped with sonar systems that help them ‘see’ using sound?
Did you know “the intricate cellular structure of certain eels allows the precise mapping of perturbations in nearby electric fields?”7
Did you know animals have cultures and strategies for social learning, especially mammals?
Did you know that mammals are endowed with limbic brains same as humans?
Did you know that nurturance, social communion, (vocal) communication, and play are rooted in limbic territory?8
Did you know the limbic brain found in mammals is not only the seat of dreams and value judgements, but also the center of emotionality?
Did you know the limbic activity of mammals draws their emotions into immediate congruence?
Did you know limbic resonance—the capacity to sense and become attuned to each other’s inner states--is present in all mammals?
Did you know that proximity to the mother is an inborn need for all mammals?9
Did you know separations of young mammals from their attachment figures send them into complete disarray?
Did you know such prolonged separations or terminated relationships affect a number of somatic parameters and can cause physical illness (low heart rate, lighter sleep with less REM sleep and more spontaneous nocturnal awakenings, disturbed circadian rhythms, declining levels of growth hormone in the blood, major alterations in immune regulation)?
Did you know “a mammal will risk and sometimes lose its life to protect a child or mate from attack?”10
Do you believe humans alone are endowed with worth and dignity?
Do you think humans alone are capable of thinking? Do you believe there is only one kind of thinking?
Do you think it's possible that language, which distinguishes us from animals, might be a “by-product of alienation from nature and detachment from the body?”11
Did you know that chickens can recognize up to 100 faces, experience empathy, and form strong social bonds?
Did you know “animals have highly developed neural systems for processing specific informational needs?”5
Did you know the brain of a single honeybee contains nearly a million neurons?
Did you know the midbrain of honeybees “pulls on memory and perception to support behavioral choice?”6
Did you know bats and dolphins are equipped with sonar systems that help them ‘see’ using sound?
Did you know “the intricate cellular structure of certain eels allows the precise mapping of perturbations in nearby electric fields?”7
Did you know animals have cultures and strategies for social learning, especially mammals?
Did you know that mammals are endowed with limbic brains same as humans?
Did you know that nurturance, social communion, (vocal) communication, and play are rooted in limbic territory?8
Did you know the limbic brain found in mammals is not only the seat of dreams and value judgements, but also the center of emotionality?
Did you know the limbic activity of mammals draws their emotions into immediate congruence?
Did you know limbic resonance—the capacity to sense and become attuned to each other’s inner states--is present in all mammals?
Did you know that proximity to the mother is an inborn need for all mammals?9
Did you know separations of young mammals from their attachment figures send them into complete disarray?
Did you know such prolonged separations or terminated relationships affect a number of somatic parameters and can cause physical illness (low heart rate, lighter sleep with less REM sleep and more spontaneous nocturnal awakenings, disturbed circadian rhythms, declining levels of growth hormone in the blood, major alterations in immune regulation)?
Did you know “a mammal will risk and sometimes lose its life to protect a child or mate from attack?”10
Do you believe humans alone are endowed with worth and dignity?
Do you think humans alone are capable of thinking? Do you believe there is only one kind of thinking?
Do you think it's possible that language, which distinguishes us from animals, might be a “by-product of alienation from nature and detachment from the body?”11
Did you know animals are autonomous beings that are part of nature and not mere commodities?
Have you ever wondered why we classify some animals as “food” and others as “companions,” even when there’s no clear biological or ethical difference?
Do you think concern for animal welfare along with the use of animal products could represent a case of cognitive dissonance?
Did you know pigs score higher than dogs on many cognitive tests?
If dogs were raised and killed for meat, would that feel morally different to you than raising and killing pigs or chickens?
Did you know animals raised for meat are often denied the chance to engage in any natural behaviors, like running, nesting, or nurturing their young?
Are you aware that animals used for eggs and milk are also slaughtered once their productivity declines?
Are you aware language helps distance us from the reality of what we're eating—using words like “beef” or “pork” instead of cow or pig?
Are you aware terms like livestock, etc., are used to desensitize consumers by referring to sentient beings as products?
Do you believe a sentient being can be a product?
Are you a product?
Did you know science now shows the lives of other organisms are far more complex and sentient than we thought?
Did you know the capacity to suffer is not related to intelligence?
Did you know that, given their sharp senses and unique sensitivities, some farmed animals may be capable of suffering even more intensely than humans?*
Did you know that farmed fish are often kept in conditions so awful they develop open sores, blindness, and deformities before being killed?
Did you know mother cows cry and search for their calves for days after they're taken away?
Did you know cows have best friends and experience stress when separated from them?
Did you know that many animals show signs of trauma, depression, and learned helplessness when confined in factory farms?
Did you know “humane” labels are largely unregulated or misleading, and animals are still bred, confined, and ultimately killed long before their natural lifespan?
Can ethical treatment really exist in a system that ends in the killing of the subject after a life of suffering?
Have you ever wondered why we classify some animals as “food” and others as “companions,” even when there’s no clear biological or ethical difference?
Do you think concern for animal welfare along with the use of animal products could represent a case of cognitive dissonance?
Did you know pigs score higher than dogs on many cognitive tests?
If dogs were raised and killed for meat, would that feel morally different to you than raising and killing pigs or chickens?
Did you know animals raised for meat are often denied the chance to engage in any natural behaviors, like running, nesting, or nurturing their young?
Are you aware that animals used for eggs and milk are also slaughtered once their productivity declines?
Are you aware language helps distance us from the reality of what we're eating—using words like “beef” or “pork” instead of cow or pig?
Are you aware terms like livestock, etc., are used to desensitize consumers by referring to sentient beings as products?
Do you believe a sentient being can be a product?
Are you a product?
Did you know science now shows the lives of other organisms are far more complex and sentient than we thought?
Did you know the capacity to suffer is not related to intelligence?
Did you know that, given their sharp senses and unique sensitivities, some farmed animals may be capable of suffering even more intensely than humans?*
Did you know that farmed fish are often kept in conditions so awful they develop open sores, blindness, and deformities before being killed?
Did you know mother cows cry and search for their calves for days after they're taken away?
Did you know cows have best friends and experience stress when separated from them?
Did you know that many animals show signs of trauma, depression, and learned helplessness when confined in factory farms?
Did you know “humane” labels are largely unregulated or misleading, and animals are still bred, confined, and ultimately killed long before their natural lifespan?
Can ethical treatment really exist in a system that ends in the killing of the subject after a life of suffering?
Do you listen to the natural world or the one shaped by your mind?
Which one do you think is more susceptible to manipulation?
Do you think humans are superior to animals because we have unique needs?
Do you think human needs cancel out the feelings and needs of animals?
If we say humans are unique, does that equal good?
Are you aware that cultural norms, rather than objective reasoning, shape much of what we view as “acceptable” when it comes to eating animals?
Is it worth asking whether taste or tradition are strong enough justifications for actions that involve large-scale suffering (around 6 billion animals killed every day by the food industry)?
If unspeakable cruelty was caused in part by your own conditioning, would you consider change?
Did you know ethical progress often means reexamining cultural habits? Traditions shape behavior but they can evolve.
Which one do you think is more susceptible to manipulation?
Do you think humans are superior to animals because we have unique needs?
Do you think human needs cancel out the feelings and needs of animals?
If we say humans are unique, does that equal good?
Are you aware that cultural norms, rather than objective reasoning, shape much of what we view as “acceptable” when it comes to eating animals?
Is it worth asking whether taste or tradition are strong enough justifications for actions that involve large-scale suffering (around 6 billion animals killed every day by the food industry)?
If unspeakable cruelty was caused in part by your own conditioning, would you consider change?
Did you know ethical progress often means reexamining cultural habits? Traditions shape behavior but they can evolve.
Did you know that humans have a disproportionately negative effect on the Earth and most of its organisms?
Did you know humans eat around 70% of the mammals on the planet?
Did you know our destruction of habitats has led to the loss of two-thirds of the planet’s vertebrates?
Did you know the animal industry is the leading cause of deforestation worldwide?
Did you know a quarter of the worldwide use of water goes to the manufacturing of animal products?
Did you know “animal farming generates more than five times the greenhouse gas emissions of all aircraft in the world taken together?”*
Did you know “more than half of all antibiotics are used on farmed animals, making the industry an ideal breeding ground for resistant bacteria?”*
Did you know that per capita consumption of animal products is going up instead of down?
Did you know massive amounts of resources (grain, corn, soy, and fresh water) that could be directly consumed by humans are used to grow livestock?*
Did you know around 75% of the world’s soy is grown to feed livestock, not people, whereas a plant-based diet uses fewer resources and causes less deforestation?
Did you know “the world’s cattle alone consume a quantity of food equal to the caloric needs of 8.7 billion people?”*
Did you know the manufacturing of animal products contributes to climate change, biodiversity loss, soil degradation, water and air pollution, rainforest destruction, irreversible destruction of marine ecosystems, and pandemic risk?
Did you know the UN has reported that “the livestock sector emerges as one of the top two or three most significant contributors to the most serious environmental problems, at every scale from local to global?”*
Are you aware that industries promoting meat and dairy products have a vested interest in maintaining the status quo, even if it's at odds with scientific, environmental, or ethical insights?
Did you know the meat and dairy industries use scare tactics, lobbying, and deceptive ad campaigns to prevent change and maximize profit?
Did you know consumption of both red and white meat increases the risk of cardiovascular disease, even after adjusting for confounding variables such as urbanization-related lifestyles, obesity, and socioeconomic status?12
Did you know meat-eaters unwittingly shut down their brains’ automatic response to the pain of animals?
Did you know transitioning to plant-based diets could reduce humanity’s entire land use by 73%?*
Did you know the world's largest organization of nutrition experts, the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, maintains a balanced vegan diet is “appropriate for all stages of the life cycle, including pregnancy, lactation, infancy, childhood, adolescence, older adulthood, and for athletes?”*
Did you know “abstaining from animal products has a preventive effect against 14 of the 15 deadliest diseases of our time?”*
Are you aware that, despite challenging norms, veganism is less extreme than raising billions of animals in confined spaces, subjecting them to mutilation and killing them for food we don't need?
Did you know humans eat around 70% of the mammals on the planet?
Did you know our destruction of habitats has led to the loss of two-thirds of the planet’s vertebrates?
Did you know the animal industry is the leading cause of deforestation worldwide?
Did you know a quarter of the worldwide use of water goes to the manufacturing of animal products?
Did you know “animal farming generates more than five times the greenhouse gas emissions of all aircraft in the world taken together?”*
Did you know “more than half of all antibiotics are used on farmed animals, making the industry an ideal breeding ground for resistant bacteria?”*
Did you know that per capita consumption of animal products is going up instead of down?
Did you know massive amounts of resources (grain, corn, soy, and fresh water) that could be directly consumed by humans are used to grow livestock?*
Did you know around 75% of the world’s soy is grown to feed livestock, not people, whereas a plant-based diet uses fewer resources and causes less deforestation?
Did you know “the world’s cattle alone consume a quantity of food equal to the caloric needs of 8.7 billion people?”*
Did you know the manufacturing of animal products contributes to climate change, biodiversity loss, soil degradation, water and air pollution, rainforest destruction, irreversible destruction of marine ecosystems, and pandemic risk?
Did you know the UN has reported that “the livestock sector emerges as one of the top two or three most significant contributors to the most serious environmental problems, at every scale from local to global?”*
Are you aware that industries promoting meat and dairy products have a vested interest in maintaining the status quo, even if it's at odds with scientific, environmental, or ethical insights?
Did you know the meat and dairy industries use scare tactics, lobbying, and deceptive ad campaigns to prevent change and maximize profit?
Did you know consumption of both red and white meat increases the risk of cardiovascular disease, even after adjusting for confounding variables such as urbanization-related lifestyles, obesity, and socioeconomic status?12
Did you know meat-eaters unwittingly shut down their brains’ automatic response to the pain of animals?
Did you know transitioning to plant-based diets could reduce humanity’s entire land use by 73%?*
Did you know the world's largest organization of nutrition experts, the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, maintains a balanced vegan diet is “appropriate for all stages of the life cycle, including pregnancy, lactation, infancy, childhood, adolescence, older adulthood, and for athletes?”*
Did you know “abstaining from animal products has a preventive effect against 14 of the 15 deadliest diseases of our time?”*
Are you aware that, despite challenging norms, veganism is less extreme than raising billions of animals in confined spaces, subjecting them to mutilation and killing them for food we don't need?
Did you know humans are almost always cognizant of the harm they do, but manage it through narratives that shift their psychology toward kinship or othering?13
Do you think putting others first is an act of virtue-signaling?
How do you feel about animal lovers who assist in the brutal oppression of animals?
How does it make you feel when your world view is challenged?
What do you think lies beneath your conditioning?
What do you think lies beneath societal and cultural conventions?
What does it say about humans if the natural world were better off without them?
Does being fully integrated in a sick society mean there is no hope of healing?
Is it possible the most important thing that sets us apart from other animals is that we are the only ones able to protect them?
Do you believe that if any species had this power, it should be its duty to use it?
Are you aware caring about animals doesn’t preclude caring about people and the two are in fact interconnected?
Do you think civilization should be measured by the degree to which it succeeds in preventing and relieving unnecessary suffering?
Do you think a culture which promotes analysis over intuition and logic above feeling may “mislead people about the nature and significance of their lives?”14
Do you think tech, AI, and social media are the apotheosis of human progress?
Do you think tech, AI, and social media can improve human empathy and kindness?
Do you think there can be trust without empathy and kindness?
Do you think there is a path forward for mankind without trust, empathy, and kindness?
Do you think we have lost sight of the fact that we are all part of an interconnected creation?
Do you think the concept of personhood born out of social consciousness has come to replace the religious concept of salvation?
Do you think the concept of personhood has been defined at the expense of other forms of life?
Do you think we’ve structured our world “with the intuition of an animal whose greatest interests lie with its own kind?”15
What do the possibilities of human nature hold if they fail to take into account those of the non-human world?
Do you think putting others first is an act of virtue-signaling?
How do you feel about animal lovers who assist in the brutal oppression of animals?
How does it make you feel when your world view is challenged?
What do you think lies beneath your conditioning?
What do you think lies beneath societal and cultural conventions?
What does it say about humans if the natural world were better off without them?
Does being fully integrated in a sick society mean there is no hope of healing?
Is it possible the most important thing that sets us apart from other animals is that we are the only ones able to protect them?
Do you believe that if any species had this power, it should be its duty to use it?
Are you aware caring about animals doesn’t preclude caring about people and the two are in fact interconnected?
Do you think civilization should be measured by the degree to which it succeeds in preventing and relieving unnecessary suffering?
Do you think a culture which promotes analysis over intuition and logic above feeling may “mislead people about the nature and significance of their lives?”14
Do you think tech, AI, and social media are the apotheosis of human progress?
Do you think tech, AI, and social media can improve human empathy and kindness?
Do you think there can be trust without empathy and kindness?
Do you think there is a path forward for mankind without trust, empathy, and kindness?
Do you think we have lost sight of the fact that we are all part of an interconnected creation?
Do you think the concept of personhood born out of social consciousness has come to replace the religious concept of salvation?
Do you think the concept of personhood has been defined at the expense of other forms of life?
Do you think we’ve structured our world “with the intuition of an animal whose greatest interests lie with its own kind?”15
What do the possibilities of human nature hold if they fail to take into account those of the non-human world?
Submit your thoughts or work to collaborate on this feature at [email protected], with “Us v. World Revisited” in the subject line.
Daniel Carden Nemo
Editor-in-Chief
1 M. Challenger, How to Be Animal: A New History of What It Means to Be Human. Canongate Books, 2021.
2 T. Lewis, F. Amini, & R. Lannon, A General Theory of Love. Random House, 2000.
3 A. Weber, The Biology of Wonder: Aliveness, Feeling and the Metamorphosis of Science. New Society Publishers, 2016.
4 M. Popova, “Do Birds Dream?” (essay). New York Times, 2024.
5 T. Lewis, F. Amini, & R. Lannon, A General Theory of Love. Random House, 2000.
6 M. Challenger, How to Be Animal: A New History of What It Means to Be Human. Canongate Books, 2021.
7 T. Lewis, F. Amini, & R. Lannon, A General Theory of Love. Random House, 2000.
8 “Mammals form close-knit, mutually nurturant social groups—families—in which members spend time touching and caring for one another.” T. Lewis, F. Amini, & R. Lannon, A General Theory of Love. Random House, 2000.
9 In reference to J. Bowlby’s attachment theory.
10 T. Lewis, F. Amini, & R. Lannon, A General Theory of Love. Random House, 2000.
11 D. Morris, The Poetry of Louise Glück: A Thematic Introduction. University of Missouri Press, 2006.
12 W. You, S. Feng, & F. Donnelly, “Total meat (flesh) supply may be a significant risk factor for cardiovascular diseases worldwide”. Food Science & Nutrition, 2023.
13 M. Challenger, "Unlearning Human Exceptionalism," contribution to GTI Forum "Solidarity with Animals," Great Transition Initiative, February 2023.
14 T. Lewis, F. Amini, & R. Lannon, A General Theory of Love. Random House, 2000.
15 M. Challenger, How to Be Animal: A New History of What It Means to Be Human. Canongate Books, 2021.
* from P. Najana, Vegan Horizon (newsletter).
2 T. Lewis, F. Amini, & R. Lannon, A General Theory of Love. Random House, 2000.
3 A. Weber, The Biology of Wonder: Aliveness, Feeling and the Metamorphosis of Science. New Society Publishers, 2016.
4 M. Popova, “Do Birds Dream?” (essay). New York Times, 2024.
5 T. Lewis, F. Amini, & R. Lannon, A General Theory of Love. Random House, 2000.
6 M. Challenger, How to Be Animal: A New History of What It Means to Be Human. Canongate Books, 2021.
7 T. Lewis, F. Amini, & R. Lannon, A General Theory of Love. Random House, 2000.
8 “Mammals form close-knit, mutually nurturant social groups—families—in which members spend time touching and caring for one another.” T. Lewis, F. Amini, & R. Lannon, A General Theory of Love. Random House, 2000.
9 In reference to J. Bowlby’s attachment theory.
10 T. Lewis, F. Amini, & R. Lannon, A General Theory of Love. Random House, 2000.
11 D. Morris, The Poetry of Louise Glück: A Thematic Introduction. University of Missouri Press, 2006.
12 W. You, S. Feng, & F. Donnelly, “Total meat (flesh) supply may be a significant risk factor for cardiovascular diseases worldwide”. Food Science & Nutrition, 2023.
13 M. Challenger, "Unlearning Human Exceptionalism," contribution to GTI Forum "Solidarity with Animals," Great Transition Initiative, February 2023.
14 T. Lewis, F. Amini, & R. Lannon, A General Theory of Love. Random House, 2000.
15 M. Challenger, How to Be Animal: A New History of What It Means to Be Human. Canongate Books, 2021.
* from P. Najana, Vegan Horizon (newsletter).
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Daniel Carden Nemo is a poet, translator, and photographer. His work has appeared in Magma Poetry, RHINO, Full Stop, Sontag Mag, and elsewhere.
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