Five Arguments for Vegetarianism

Philosophy in the Contemporary World 1 (4):25-39 (1994)
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Abstract

Five different arguments for vegetarianism are discussed: the system of meat production deprives poor people of food to provide meat for the wealthy, thus violating the principle of distributive justice; the world livestock industry causes great and manifold ecological destruction; meat-eating cultures and societal oppression of women are intimately linked and so feminism and vegetarianism must both be embraced to transform our patriarchal culture; both utilitarian and rights-based reasoning lead to the conclusion that raising and slaughtering animals is immoral, and so we ought to boycott meat; meat consumption causes many serious diseases and lowers life expectancy, and so is unhealthy. Objections to each argument are examined. The conclusion reached is that the cumulative case successfully establishes vegetarianism as a virtuous goal.

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William O. Stephens
Creighton University

Citations of this work

Ethical Veganism, Virtue, and Greatness of the Soul.Carlo Alvaro - 2017 - Journal of Agricultural and Environmental Ethics 30 (6):765-781.
Virtues and Animals: A Minimally Decent Ethic for Practical Living in a Non-ideal World.Cheryl Abbate - 2014 - Journal of Agricultural and Environmental Ethics 27 (6):909-929.
Fake meat.William O. Stephens - 2018 - Encyclopedia of Food and Agricultural Ethics.
Veganism, Moral Motivation and False Consciousness.Susana Pickett - 2021 - Journal of Agricultural and Environmental Ethics 34 (3):1-21.

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