--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In accepting as two primary texts…" description: "\"“In accepting as two primary texts, Singer's Animal Liberation and Regan's The Case for Animal Rights--texts that valorize rationality--the animal defe..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f1/carol-j-adams-33397_animal_in-accepting-as-two-primary-texts-singer_2779500.jpg" --- # In accepting as two primary texts, Singer's Animal… ![“In accepting as two primary texts, Singer's Animal Liberation and Regan's The Case for Animal Rights--texts that valorize rationality--the animal defense movement reiterates a patriarchal disavowal of emotions as having a legitimate role in theory making. The problem is that while on the one hand…” quote by Carol J. Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f1/carol-j-adams-33397_animal_in-accepting-as-two-primary-texts-singer_2779500.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f1/carol-j-adams-33397_animal_in-accepting-as-two-primary-texts-singer_2779500.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f1/carol-j-adams-33397_animal_in-accepting-as-two-primary-texts-singer_2779500.jpg) > ““In accepting as two primary texts, Singer's Animal Liberation and Regan's The Case for Animal Rights--texts that valorize rationality--the animal defense movement reiterates a patriarchal disavowal of emotions as having a legitimate role in theory making. The problem is that while on the one hand it articulates positions against animal suffering, on the other hand animal rights theory dispenses with the idea that caring about and emotionally responding to this suffering can be appropriate sources of knowledge. Emotions and theory are related. One does not have to eviscerate theory of emotional content and reflection to present legitimate theory. Nor does the presence of emotional content and reflection eradicate or militate against thinking theoretically. By disavowing emotional responses, two major texts of animal defense close off the intellectual space for recognizing the role of emotions in knowledge and therefore theory making. As the issue of caring about suffering is problematized, difficulties with animal rights per se become apparent. Without a gender analysis, several important issues that accompany a focus on suffering are neglected, to the detriment of the movement. Animal rights theory offers a legitimating language for animal defense without acknowledging the indebtedness of the rights-holder to caring relationships. Nor does it provide models for theoretically engaging with our own emotional responses, since emotions are seen as untrustworthy. Because the animal advocacy movement has failed to incorporate an understanding of caring as a motivation for so many animal defense activists, and because it has not addressed the gendered nature of caring--that it is woman's duty to provide service to others, while it is men's choice--it has not addressed adequately the implications that a disproportionate number of activists are women motivated because they care about animal suffering. Animal rights theory that disowns or ignores emotions mirrors on the theoretical level the gendered emotional responses inherent in a patriarchal society. In this culture, women are supposed to do the emotional work for heterosexual intimate relationships: 'a man will come to expect that a woman's role in his life is to take care of his feelings and alleviate the discomfort involved in feeling.' At the cultural level, this may mean that women are doing the emotional work for the animal defense movement. And this emotional work takes place in the context of our own oppression.”” [Carol J. Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-j-adams/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote argues that mainstream animal rights theory excludes emotions, treating them as untrustworthy, which limits understanding of caring and gender dynamics in activism. **In simple terms:** Animal rights theory ignores emotions, missing caring motives and gender issues. Key Takeaway Integrate emotional insight and gender analysis into animal advocacy. Themes animal rights gender studies emotion theory activism Mood critical reflective analytical Type philosophical academic activist When to use this quote - policy drafting - activist training - academic curricula - public outreach Key Concepts feminist ethics cognitive affect theory intersectionality Questions to Reflect On - How can caring be ethically incorporated without compromising rigor? - What gendered assumptions shape our advocacy? A Different Perspective Emotions can bias reasoning and may be exploited to undermine scientific objectivity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Animal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animal/) [Animal liberation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animal-liberation/) [Animal Rights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animal-rights-2/) [Animal suffering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animal-suffering/) [Emotions Theory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/emotions-theory-3300169/) [Gendered Emotional](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gendered-emotional-3300172/) [Intimate Relationship](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intimate-relationship/) [Patriarchal society](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/patriarchal-society/) [Rationality Animal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rationality-animal-3300171/) [Service to others](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/service-to-others/) [Theory Emotional](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theory-emotional-3300170/) ## Related quotes > [Typically, defenders of experiments on animals do not deny that animals suffer. They cannot deny the animals' suffering, because they need to stress the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/typically-defenders-of-experiments-on-animals-do-not-deny-that/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [I find it very annoying that so many animal advocates talk about the difficulty of being vegan. Many animal advocates are inclined to make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-l-francione/i-find-it-very-annoying-that-so-many-animal-advocates-talk-about-the/) [Gary L. Francione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-l-francione/) > [“But why must the system go to such lengths to block our empathy? Why all the psychological acrobatics? The answer is simple: because we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melanie-joy/but-why-must-the-system-go-to-such-lengths-to-block-our-empathy-why/) [Melanie Joy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melanie-joy/) > [People must have renounced, it seems to me, all natural intelligence to dare to advance that animals are but animated machines… It appears to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/people-must-have-renounced-it-seems-to-me-all-natural-intelligence-to/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [Let's just call things what they are. When a man's love of finery clouds his moral judgment, that is vanity. When he lets a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-scully/let-s-just-call-things-what-they-are-when-a-man-s-love-of-finery/) [Matthew Scully](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-scully/) > [I wish no living thing to suffer pain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-bysshe-shelley/i-wish-no-living-thing-to-suffer-pain/) [Percy Bysshe Shelley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-bysshe-shelley/) > [If we are ever to halt climate change and conserve land, water and other resources, not to mention reduce animal suffering, we must celebrate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ingrid-newkirk/if-we-are-ever-to-halt-climate-change-and-conserve-land-water-and/) [Ingrid Newkirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ingrid-newkirk/) > [If you are interested in preventing animal suffering, the first thing you should give up is eggs and milk because the animals who produce…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cesar-chavez/if-you-are-interested-in-preventing-animal-suffering-the-first-thing/) [Cesar Chavez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cesar-chavez/) > [“I take it hard when an animal in my care suffers or dies. I take it even harder when the animal's suffering is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-bender/i-take-it-hard-when-an-animal-in-my-care-suffers-or-dies-i-take-it/) [Linda Bender](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-bender/) > [It is more important to prevent animal suffering, rather than sit to contemplate the evils of the universe praying in the company of priests.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gautama-buddha/it-is-more-important-to-prevent-animal-suffering-rather-than-sit-to/) [Gautama Buddha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gautama-buddha/) > [“The carnistic schema, which twists information so that nonsense seems to make perfect sense, also explains why we fail to see the absurdities of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melanie-joy/the-carnistic-schema-which-twists-information-so-that-nonsense-seems/) [Melanie Joy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melanie-joy/) > [“Whether we're talking about fish species, pigs, or some other eaten animal, is such suffering the most important thing in the world? Obviously not.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/whether-we-re-talking-about-fish-species-pigs-or-some-other-eaten/) [Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/) > [“When a man’s love of finery clouds his moral judgment, that is vanity. When he lets a demanding palate make his moral choices, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-scully/when-a-man-s-love-of-finery-clouds-his-moral-judgment-that-is-vanity/) [Matthew Scully](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-scully/) > [“ONE OF THE most pernicious effects of religion is that it tends to divorce morality from the reality of human and animal suffering.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/one-of-the-most-pernicious-effects-of-religion-is-that-it-tends-to/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [There's no better feeling in the world than knowing that my show played a role in stopping animal abuse or alleviating animal suffering.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-velez-mitchell/there-s-no-better-feeling-in-the-world-than-knowing-that-my-show/) [Jane Velez-Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-velez-mitchell/) ## More by Carol J. Adams > [“Speak to meat eaters the way you would speak to a wild animal: softly and without any sudden movements.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-j-adams/speak-to-meat-eaters-the-way-you-would-speak-to-a-wild-animal-softly/) [Carol J. Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-j-adams/) > [While self-interest arising from the enjoyment of meat eating is obviously one reason for its entrenchment, and inertia another, a process of language usage…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-j-adams/while-self-interest-arising-from-the-enjoyment-of-meat-eating-is/) [Carol J. Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-j-adams/) > [“If the body becomes a special focus for women's struggle for freedom then what is ingested is a logical initial locus for announcing one's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-j-adams/if-the-body-becomes-a-special-focus-for-women-s-struggle-for-freedom/) [Carol J. Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-j-adams/) > [Until a vegan or vegetarian enters the room, people don't see themselves as meat-eaters. They are merely 'eaters', and it is we vegans who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-j-adams/until-a-vegan-or-vegetarian-enters-the-room-people-don-t-see/) [Carol J. Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-j-adams/) > [“Granted, vegetarian naming wrests meat eating from a context of acceptance; this does not invalidate its mission. One thing must be acknowledged about vegetarian…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-j-adams/granted-vegetarian-naming-wrests-meat-eating-from-a-context-of/) [Carol J. Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-j-adams/) > [We live in a culture that has institutionalized the oppression of animals on at least two levels: in formal structures such as slaughterhouses, meat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-j-adams/we-live-in-a-culture-that-has-institutionalized-the-oppression-of/) [Carol J. Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-j-adams/) > [“Many efforts on behalf of animals will qualitatively improve humans' living conditions as well, which is likely to be the case.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-j-adams/many-efforts-on-behalf-of-animals-will-qualitatively-improve-humans/) [Carol J. Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-j-adams/) > [“The situation is established not only to provoke defensiveness but to sidetrack the reformer into answering the wrong questions… In this, the pattern of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-j-adams/the-situation-is-established-not-only-to-provoke-defensiveness-but-to/) [Carol J. Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-j-adams/) > [“I think that in terms of emotion, that our culture allows men to be angry. The animal rights movement gives men a legitimate reason…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-j-adams/i-think-that-in-terms-of-emotion-that-our-culture-allows-men-to-be/) [Carol J. Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-j-adams/) > [What parents said they valued most were discussions with teachers and heads, and what they wanted was more descriptive information in their children's school…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-j-adams/what-parents-said-they-valued-most-were-discussions-with-teachers-and/) [Carol J. Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-j-adams/) > [Everywhere animals are in chains, but we image them as free.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-j-adams/everywhere-animals-are-in-chains-but-we-image-them-as-free/) [Carol J. Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-j-adams/) > [“We believe that feminism is a transformative philosophy that embraces the amelioration of life on earth for all life-forms, for all natural entities.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-j-adams/we-believe-that-feminism-is-a-transformative-philosophy-that-embraces/) [Carol J. Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-j-adams/) > [“In a situation where flesh is consumed, vegetarians inevitably call attention to themselves. They have made something absent on their plates; perhaps a verbal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-j-adams/in-a-situation-where-flesh-is-consumed-vegetarians-inevitably-call/) [Carol J. Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-j-adams/) > [Vegetarianism is an act of the imagination. It reflects an ability to imagine alternatives to the texts of meat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-j-adams/vegetarianism-is-an-act-of-the-imagination-it-reflects-an-ability-to/) [Carol J. Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-j-adams/) [Explore all 15 Carol J. Adams quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-j-adams/) ## More Animal quotes > [I was 3-years-old - to this day it is a vivid memory. My family and I were on a boat, catching fish. As one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-phoenix/i-was-3-years-old-to-this-day-it-is-a-vivid-memory-my-family-and-i/) [Joaquin Phoenix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-phoenix/) > [Animals know nothing of themselves, and they also know nothing of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/animals-know-nothing-of-themselves-and-they-also-know-nothing-of-the/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [Humans are animals too, but some do not like to work from expectations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mak-786/humans-are-animals-too-but-some-do-not-like-to-work-from-expectations/) [Mak\_786](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mak-786/) > [When grubbing for necessities man is still an animal. He becomes uniquely human when he reaches out for the superfluous and extravagant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/when-grubbing-for-necessities-man-is-still-an-animal-he-becomes/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [I'm 38 and I'm single, and I'm having my most intense and gratifying relationship with a dog. But we all learn about love in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caroline-knapp/i-m-38-and-i-m-single-and-i-m-having-my-most-intense-and-gratifying/) [Caroline Knapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caroline-knapp/) > [Practically all animals which move fast in a homogeneous medium have found means of giving their body a streamlined shape, thereby reducing friction to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/konrad-lorenz/practically-all-animals-which-move-fast-in-a-homogeneous-medium-have/) [Konrad Lorenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/konrad-lorenz/) > [A horse, a horse, my kingdom for a horse!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/a-horse-a-horse-my-kingdom-for-a-horse/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [“it is a federal system of sadistic torture, vivisection, and animal genocide, which has been carried on for decades under the fraudulent guise of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-tobias/it-is-a-federal-system-of-sadistic-torture-vivisection-and-animal/) [Michael Tobias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-tobias/) > [“What does it mean to be a self-conscious animal? The idea is ludicrous, if it is not monstrous. It means to know that one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-becker/what-does-it-mean-to-be-a-self-conscious-animal-the-idea-is-ludicrous/) [Ernest Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-becker/) > [We must love animals in such a powerful way that we should reject to eat them!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/we-must-love-animals-in-such-a-powerful-way-that-we-should-reject-to/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [“The universe contains any amount of horrible ways to be woken up, such as the noise of the mob breaking down the front door,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/the-universe-contains-any-amount-of-horrible-ways-to-be-woken-up-such/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [This brings me back to the image of Kafka standing before a fish in the Berlin aquarium, a fish on which his gaze fell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/this-brings-me-back-to-the-image-of-kafka-standing-before-a-fish-in/) [Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/) > [That dog, I say that dog is lower than a snake full of buckshot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/foghorn-leghorn/that-dog-i-say-that-dog-is-lower-than-a-snake-full-of-buckshot/) [Foghorn Leghorn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/foghorn-leghorn/) > [I bet plants go like 'Weeeeeeeee!' whenever they're swallowed by a giraffe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-bet-plants-go-like-weeeeeeeee-whenever-they-re-swallowed-by-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Animal rights without veganism is like human rights with slavery. It makes no sense. None whatsoever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-l-francione/animal-rights-without-veganism-is-like-human-rights-with-slavery-it/) [Gary L. Francione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-l-francione/) [Browse all 13,456 Animal quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animal/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“In accepting as two primary texts, Singer's Animal Liberation and Regan's The Case for Animal Rights--texts that valorize rationality--the animal defense movement reiterates a patriarchal disavowal of emotions as having a legitimate role in theory making. The problem is that while on the one hand it articulates positions against animal suffering, on the other hand animal rights theory dispenses with the idea that caring about and emotionally responding to this suffering can be appropriate sources of knowledge. Emotions and theory are related. One does not have to eviscerate theory of emotional content and reflection to present legitimate theory. Nor does the presence of emotional content and reflection eradicate or militate against thinking theoretically. By disavowing emotional responses, two major texts of animal defense close off the intellectual space for recognizing the role of emotions in knowledge and therefore theory making. As the issue of caring about suffering is problematized, difficulties with animal rights per se become apparent. Without a gender analysis, several important issues that accompany a focus on suffering are neglected, to the detriment of the movement. Animal rights theory offers a legitimating language for animal defense without acknowledging the indebtedness of the rights-holder to caring relationships. Nor does it provide models for theoretically engaging with our own emotional responses, since emotions are seen as untrustworthy. Because the animal advocacy movement has failed to incorporate an understanding of caring as a motivation for so many animal defense activists, and because it has not addressed the gendered nature of caring--that it is woman's duty to provide service to others, while it is men's choice--it has not addressed adequately the implications that a disproportionate number of activists are women motivated because they care about animal suffering. Animal rights theory that disowns or ignores emotions mirrors on the theoretical level the gendered emotional responses inherent in a patriarchal society. In this culture, women are supposed to do the emotional work for heterosexual intimate relationships: 'a man will come to expect that a woman's role in his life is to take care of his feelings and alleviate the discomfort involved in feeling.' At the cultural level, this may mean that women are doing the emotional work for the animal defense movement. And this emotional work takes place in the context of our own oppression.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Carol J. Adams" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-j-adams/in-accepting-as-two-primary-texts-singer-s-animal-liberation-and/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Animal" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-j-adams/in-accepting-as-two-primary-texts-singer-s-animal-liberation-and/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f1/carol-j-adams-33397_animal_in-accepting-as-two-primary-texts-singer_2779500.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f1/carol-j-adams-33397_animal_in-accepting-as-two-primary-texts-singer_2779500.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f1/carol-j-adams-33397_animal_in-accepting-as-two-primary-texts-singer_2779500.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“In accepting as two primary texts, Singer's Animal Liberation and Regan's The Case for Animal Rights--texts…” — Carol J. Adams", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Carol J. Adams", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-j-adams/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“In accepting as two primary texts,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-j-adams/in-accepting-as-two-primary-texts-singer-s-animal-liberation-and/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-j-adams/in-accepting-as-two-primary-texts-singer-s-animal-liberation-and/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```