A1 Refereed original research article in a scientific journal

“Has an Ugly Caw”: The Moral Implications of How Hunting Organizations Depict Nonhuman Animals




AuthorsAarnio Jenna, Aaltola Elisa

PublisherTaylor & Francis

Publication year2023

JournalAnthrozoös

eISSN1753-0377

DOIhttps://doi.org/10.1080/08927936.2023.2266923

Web address https://doi.org/10.1080/08927936.2023.2266923

Self-archived copy’s web addresshttps://research.utu.fi/converis/portal/detail/Publication/181695912


Abstract

We examined how four hunting organizations in Finland and in the UK (The Finnish Wildlife Agency, Finnish Hunters’ Association, The British Association for Shooting and Conservation, and Countryside Alliance) describe wild animals on their web pages and what the moral implications of these descriptions are. How do these hunting organizations define animals, and how does this impact the moral regard given to these animals? Using discourse analysis together with philosophical analysis, our examination revealed that the descriptions focus mainly on physical attributes, leaving out the minds of animals. Therefore, hunting organizations take part in dementalization (underestimation or denial of minds) of nonhuman animals, which interlinks with mechanomorphism (the depiction of animals as biological machines). We argue that dementalization and mechanomorphism in the descriptions serve a strategic purpose, as they hinder the possibility of recognizing animal experiences and individuality and keep animal ethical questions out of view. Further, the organizations tend to approach the ethics of hunting through the perspective of human interests only, whilst the interests and inherent value of animals are sidelined. In sum, the way in which hunting organizations depict animals is prone to sidelining ethical issues concerning the killing of animals.


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Last updated on 2024-26-11 at 19:12