theirfourpawstovivisectthemandseethecirculationofthe
blood which was a great subject of conversation.^27
Fromthispoint,itreallywastruethatthestatusofanimals
could only improve.
The Enlightenment and After
Thenewvogueforexperimentingonanimalsmayitselfhave
been partly responsible for a change in attitudes toward
animals,fortheexperimentsrevealedaremarkablesimilarity
betweenthephysiologyofhumanbeingsandotheranimals.
Strictly, this wasnot inconsistentwith what Descarteshad
said, but it made his views less plausible. Voltaire put it well:
There are barbarians who seize this dog, who so greatly
surpassesmaninfidelityandfriendship,andnailhimdownto
atableanddissecthimalive,toshowyouthemesaraicveins!
Youdiscover in himall thesameorgans of feeling asin
yourself.Answerme,mechanist,hasNaturearrangedallthe
springsoffeelinginthisanimaltotheendthathemightnot
feel?^28
Althoughnoradicalchangetookplace,avarietyofinfluences
combined to improve attitudes to animals. There was a
gradual recognition that other animals do suffer and are
entitledtosome consideration.Itwasnotthoughtthatthey
hadanyrights,andtheirinterestswereoverriddenbyhuman
interests;neverthelesstheScottishphilosopherDavidHume
wasexpressing a commonenough sentimentwhenhe said
thatweare“bound bythelawsofhumanityto givegentle
usage to these creatures.”^29