| | | Animal Rights | | :--- | :--- | :--- | | Core belief | Animals can be used by humans, but suffering must be minimized. | Animals have inherent value. They are not property. Use is exploitation. | | Goal | Bigger cages, humane slaughter, better zoo exhibits. | End of factory farming, animal testing, hunting, zoos. | | Philosophy | Utilitarian (reduce net suffering). | Rights-based (abolition of use). | | Allows | Meat, dairy, research, pets (if treated well). | Veganism, no animal products, no pets (some argue "adoption only"). |
: Minimizing suffering and providing "a life worth living". Animal Rights | | | Animal Rights | | :---
However, it was not until the Enlightenment period that the concept of animal welfare began to take shape. René Descartes (1596-1650 CE), a French philosopher, famously declared that animals were "machines" without feelings or consciousness, a perspective that would later be challenged by thinkers such as Jeremy Bentham (1748-1832 CE) and John Stuart Mill (1806-1873 CE). Bentham, in particular, argued that animals had the capacity to feel pleasure and pain and that their welfare should be considered in moral decision-making. Use is exploitation