Human rights v animal rights: seamless expressions of empathy?

In 1792, Wollstonecraft wrote A Vindication of the Rights of Woman, which advocated sexual equality and a dramatic change in education of women so that women were not simply taught how to be 'alluring mistresses' but also 'rational mothers'. As was the case with Pythagoras, Wollstonecraft's concern for the rights of women was far ahead of its time.

Wollstonecraft's daughter, Mary Shelley, gave a new focus to her mother's ideas in the famous Frankenstein. Wollstonecraft had written that women 'are treated as a kind of subordinate beings, and not as a part of the human species'. Mary Shelley created Dr Frankenstein's Monster. The Monster is cast as an 'outsider' but, interestingly, is also a vegetarian. By gaining sympathy for the 'outsider', Mary Shelley utilises her Mother's concept of equality to highlight issues common to both women's rights and animal rights.

Mary Shelley's husband, Percy Bysshe Shelley, was also influenced by Wollstonecraft's ideas of equality when he wrote A Vindication of Natural Diet. Shelley saw abstinence from meat as a social levelling mechanism, a way to bring about a restructure of the classes by foregoing needless luxuries.

Shelley's writing also employs a theme of pacifism towards all beings and his work carries 'an explicitly vegetarian message'. Shelley articulated the idea that pacifism and equality extended beyond the human circumstance, to all those who could feel pain.

His teachings influenced later writers including George Bernard Shaw and Mahatma Ghandi.

William Wilberforce and his legacy

William Wilberforce is primarily known for his pivotal role in abolishing the slave trade in England. However, he was also one of the founding members of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and a strong supporter of legal rights for animals.

Wilberforce funded hospitals and schools and was a patron of the arts. He also advocated for laws to prevent the exploitation of child labour.

Wilberforce's passion for social justice stemmed from a deeply religious base and a commitment to benevolence towards others.

The statute to abolish the slave trade finally came into effect in 1808. When the legislation was passed, Wilberforce reacted by asking, '[W]ell, what shall we abolish next?'

He devoted his energies, alongside MP Richard Martin and other humanitarians, to establish the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. The first goal of the group was to reduce the improper treatment of cattle in the trip to urban slaughter. This was achieved in 1822 with the passage of 'Martin's Act', the first specific piece of anti-cruelty legislation in the world.

For Wilberforce, the issue was not whether the abolitionist cause was more important than preventing cruelty to animals. Both causes sought to correct injustice caused, in each case, by a lack of benevolence and consideration for others.

Conclusion

Philosophically, the causes of human and animal rights are not mutually exclusive.