Product Description

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #508786 in Books
• Published on: 2001-01
• Released on: 2001-01-09
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 384 pages

Amazon.com
Steven Wise has spent his legal career in courts across the United States, championing the interests of dogs, cats, dolphins, deer, goats, sheep, African gray parrots, and American bald eagles. In Rattling the Cage, Wise--who teaches "animal rights law" at several academic institutions, including Harvard Law School--presents a thorough survey of the legal, philosophical, and religious origins of humankind's inhumanity toward citizens of the animal kingdom. Wise's devotion for animals is evident as he explains how the bigoted notion that nonhuman creatures possess mere instrumental value rather than intrinsic value has led to their worldwide enslavement for human benefit.

Rattling the Cage offers Wise's argument to secure the blessings of liberty for chimpanzees and bonobos. Despite the cognitive, emotional, social, and sexual sophistication exhibited by both species, Wise acknowledges that advocating the legal personhood of what others might consider hairy little beasts leaves him vulnerable to ridicule and marginalization as a fringe academic. He compares his struggle to that of Galileo, recognizing that anachronistic cultural and religious beliefs may disable modern judges from ruling according to correct principles just as the irrational convictions of Galileo's contemporaries forced them to cling to an Earth-centered universe that no longer existed. "Think of a Fundamentalist Protestant faced with a decision about teaching evolution in the public schools or a Roman Catholic deciding a question of abortion rights," Wise suggests, then turns the rhetoric up a notch: "Is it surprising that Nazi judges dispensed Nazi justice and that racist judges dispensed racist justice?" Wise seems certain, though, that our concept of justice eventually will evolve to the point where no chimp or bonobo will be deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of law--perhaps the best for which any primate can hope, at least until apes preside over courts to administer a justice of their own making. --Tim Hogan

From Publishers Weekly
In a groundbreaking study, Harvard lecturer Wise argues that chimpanzees and bonobos (sometimes called "pygmy chimpanzees") should be granted the status of legal personhood to guarantee the basic protections of bodily integrity and freedom from harm. A lawyer who lectures on animal rights law, Wise has spent 20 years fighting for the interests of nonhuman primates, dolphins, deer, cats, dogs, bald eagles, goats and other species. Documenting the treatment of our close primate cousins, which are routinely kidnapped for biomedical research, slaughtered for their meat and caged in roadside zoos, Wise notes that chimpanzees and bonobos are nearing annihilation. Their DNA structure is a 99% match to humans', and our brain structures are incredibly similar. Furthermore, Wise cites studies of primate social life revealing that chimps exhibit keen sensitivity to others, conflict resolution, reciprocal exchanges and toolmaking abilities; "enculturated" chimps can add numerals and learn abstract symbols. Indeed, an increasing number of biologists insist that chimpanzees and humans should be grouped in the same genus, Homo. Ten years ago this book would have been ridiculed or ignored, but the tide is turning: in 1996, the British government banned the use of great apes in biomedical research, and respected international law commentators now support whales' legal right to life. Although one could argue that overlegislation is not the best way to combat society's maltreatment of animals, Wise's proposal to accord animals fundamental legal rights could some day be adopted (as chimpanzee expert Goodall believes it will be). This impassioned, closely argued brief presents a formidable challenge to the treatment of animals perpetrated by agribusiness, scientific research, the pharmaceutical industry, hunters, live-animal traders and others. It's a clarion call for rethinking the animal-human relationship. (Feb.)
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal
Animal rights law is an emerging field that has received some press recently since Harvard Law School announced its first course in animal law. A dozen law schools already have courses, and one, Lewis and Clark College's Northwestern School of Law, has published the periodical Animal Law since 1995. Wise, who teaches the Harvard course, is a prominent animal rights lawyer and activist. He begins his book with a survey of the legal treatment of animals from ancient times to the present, examines the nature of consciousness, and concludes with a discussion of human rights. Wise offers both a reasoned treatise and a compelling argument for according rights, specifically "legal personhood," to chimpanzees and bonobos, with whom we share over 98 percent of our DNA structure. This important and provocative book should be on all library shelves.
-Peggie Partello, Keene State Coll. Lib., NH
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Customer Reviews

Animals Deserve More Legal Rights!
Animals are living, breathing, feeling, living, loving, soul-filled children of God, just as much as we human animals are.

Further, Animals can (and do) speak, only we ignorant human animals are too stupid to take the time to listen.
We human animals are legends in our own minds.

Animals deserve the same love, respect, compassion, consideration, AND RIGHTS that we afford to anyone else.

Animals have souls....... eternal souls.
To think otherwise is to be ignorant, arrogant, speciesist and one other thing: Wrong.
I highly recommend the book "The Souls of Animals".

Slimy politicians dont want to give Animals Rights for three reasons:
1. Animals dont vote (Thus, for politicians who are seeking to climb the political ladder, giving Animals rights doesnt help the politicians, because no "monetary thanks" or "political support" are forthcoming...therefore, they dont care, unless they can benefit.)
2. Animals dont carry wallets (Thus, politicians dont care about them, because they dont contribute to the campaigns)
3. Politicians are human animals, and like many human animals, they only think of themselves, and they are ignorant of the fact that ALL Animals (human or otherwise) are equally important. This prejudice is called SPECIESISM. It gives us the delusion of grandeur that allows us to hype ourselves, while ignoring our spiritual siblings who walk on four legs, and who deserve just as much love, compassion, and LEGAL RIGHTS that the rest of us do.

If WE tell the politicians that they wont be getting OUR votes, or OUR campaign contributions, unless they give Animals legal rights, you will see alot more Animal friendly politicians out there, and Animals will gain many legal rights. Try it and see.

Oh, and just one question for you......If YOUR soul was in the body of a Cat or Dog, would YOU want rights?
You better believe you most certainly would, therefore, lets give Animals the rights that they so richly deserve!


"Man has alot to learn from the higher Animals"
-Mark Twain

Rights Are Won, Not Awarded
Steven Wise's argument that animals deserve rights proportional to their intellect is heart-felt and compassionate. He compares their emancipation to the gradual emergence of equal rights for slaves and women, and the growing consensus that unborn fetuses have legal 'personhood' after viability.

However, not addressed in his argument is the fact that the above rights have been hard-fought and won only after extended legal battle. In each case, either the maligned victim or legal representation for the victim has taken the legal system to task in redefining the law to expand human rights.

Who will speak for animal rights? Without strong legal basis for such a change -- and one might cynically add 'strong financial basis' -- such rights are not likely to be conferred based on logic and compassion alone.

Wise's treatise is thought provoking and addresses an important turning point in human history, as Christian law principles become more and more incompatible with modern understanding, but it suffers from an unfortunate streak of idealism.

A step in the right direction
For as long as anyone can remember animals have been property of humans. Opinions differ as to why, ranging from god given rights of dominion, to levels of moral considerability, but the end result is generally the same, humans can own animals, and use them for any of a variety of purposes; no question. An animal, despite being a sentient being, in our current American legal system has no more rights to protect it from enslavement or bodily harm than say, a toaster, or a rock. Today we are learning more and more about our human place in the world, and in this investigation many are beginning to question our role as caretakers or rulers of other beings. Steven Wise is one such person. He questions the right of humans to deny sentient creatures legal personhood. What is it about humans, other than tradition and precedent, that fosters the continued enslavement and cruel treatment of nonhuman animals? In this book he focuses particularly on chimpanzees and bonobos, who are humans closest genetic relatives. Wise refers to a wide variety of philosophers, scientific findings, and legal precedents to make this book a compelling testament towards the legal personhood of nonhuman animals.
Wise begins this book by telling the story of Jerom, a chimpanzee who lived and died at the Yerkes Regional Primate Research Center. Jerom was intentionally infected with several strains of HIV over his time at the center. When Jerom was near death another chimpanzee, Nathan, was injected with Jerom's blood, which will likely (if it has not already happened) cause his death as well. Wise dedicated this book to Jerom, writing on the dedication page: For Jerom, a person, not a thing.
He continues on to write about a legal wall that exists in our society. It has been standing since the dawn of human laws, separating us humans from everything nonhuman, denying legal rights to anything not on our side of the wall. It is the goal of people like Wise and others of similar philosophies to demolish this wall and grant legal considerability to those nonhuman creatures deserving of such respect. He agrees that not all animals should have as full legal rights as a fully cognizant adult human, but that chimpanzees and bonobos in particular are deserving of protection from enslavement, and invasive bodily harm. He is not asking for chimps to be allowed to vote, but for the American legal system to recognize something other than human as a living being, something deserving of more rights than a toaster.
Wise discusses the history of common law, and its role in the development of our current system. Not so long ago different groups of humans were denied basic rights by this system, i.e. slaves, women, and other minorities. During the era of slavery in America it was nearly unheard of to consider a slave a human being. They had no legal rights, although it is apparent that they are indeed human beings. Darwin stated that only members of the same species are capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring, and members of different races around the world have proven that skin color has nothing to do with ones humanity. However, at the time in history the law did not recognize them, and it was up to the supporters of equality to fight within the system to attain it. Today we look back at the perpetuation of such oppression with much shame and anger. The fact that it was allowed to exist for so long fuels the indignation of the nation. Wise and those like him are hoping that someday animal enslavement will also be an unsavory relic of the past.
In the following chapters Wise supports his theories with scientific data supporting the existence of animal minds. It is impossible to prove that anything is conscious, you and I included, but science shows as closely as possible that chimpanzee and bonobo minds work in very similar ways to human brains. As nearly as we can tell they are capable of emotion, and most certainly pain and suffering. Wise uses these reasons to claim for nonhuman animals the same basic rights that we claim for humans.
Wise, despite being a lawyer, writes in a very conversational tone, inviting the reader to join him on this journey that is easily understood by non-lawyers. All of his arguments are set out in logical procession, marked with humor and some very poignant reflections. There are many strong arguments supporting this issue, but until this book appeared there had been very few resources pulling all of them together in one deeply compelling web of logic and compassion. Wise is incredibly thorough in his arguments, attacking the problem from every angle, philosophical as well as legal and scientific. Just how many different sources of opinion and fact went into the making of this book is shown somewhat by the 66 pages of citations at the end of the book. He was able to filter through ages of legal studies, as well as scientific theory to create this work, the final product being a clear and concise jewel of a book.
The issue at stake in this book is one of life and death to those concerned. It is too late for countless animals that have been forced to suffer and die in laboratories, furthering science to preserve their captors, humans. This is a tragic loss, but as long as there are authors and activists like Steven Wise, Jane Goodall, (who wrote the forward to this book) and many other dedicated individuals and groups we may live to see nonhuman animal enslavement diminished, if not eradicated. This book is setting the stage for further motions in future generations. If this generation can put holes in the wall Wise discussed early in the book, allowing some nonhuman animals to come over to our side, at least in this author's humble opinion, it is a step in the right direction.