Abstract

Animal ethics has become a valuable part of philosophy. The main elements include criticism of anthropocentric assumptions and emphasis on experientialism. The analytic approach, which has applied standard moral theories to other animals, has been accompanied by the postmodern approach, which emphasizes matters such as plurality and contextuality. This is where J. M. Coetzee becomes relevant. His novels present ethical views related to nonhuman animals, constantly underpinned by the issue of how to communicate such views to others. On a more concrete level, the novels are a form of persuasion in themselves.