--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The troubled middle is…a place where it’s…" description: "\"“The troubled middle is…a place where it’s possible to truly love animals and still accept their occasional role as resources, objects, and tools. Thos..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/769/emily-anthes-34205_big-heart_the-troubled-middle-is-a-place-where-it_1949017.jpg" --- # The troubled middle is…a place where it’s possible to… ![“The troubled middle is…a place where it’s possible to truly love animals and still accept their occasional role as resources, objects, and tools. Those of us in the troubled middle believe that animals deserve to be treated well, but we don’t want to ban their use in medical research. We care…” quote by Emily Anthes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/769/emily-anthes-34205_big-heart_the-troubled-middle-is-a-place-where-it_1949017.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/769/emily-anthes-34205_big-heart_the-troubled-middle-is-a-place-where-it_1949017.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/769/emily-anthes-34205_big-heart_the-troubled-middle-is-a-place-where-it_1949017.jpg) > ““The troubled middle is…a place where it’s possible to truly love animals and still accept their occasional role as resources, objects, and tools. Those of us in the troubled middle believe that animals deserve to be treated well, but we don’t want to ban their use in medical research. We care enough to want livestock to be raised humanely, but don’t want to abandon meat-eating altogether. ‘Some argue that we are fence-sitters, moral wimps,’ Herzog, himself a resident of the troubled middle, writes. ‘I believe, however, that the troubled middle makes perfect sense because moral quagmires are inevitable in a species with a huge brain and a big heart. They come with the territory.”” [Emily Anthes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-anthes/) ## 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 describes a moderate stance that acknowledges both compassion for animals and the practical use of them, recognizing moral complexity in a highly intelligent species. **In simple terms:** A balanced view sees animals as both beings to care for and resources. Key Takeaway Accept moral ambiguity while seeking humane practices. Themes ethics animal welfare moderation Mood thoughtful reflective Type philosophical ethical When to use this quote - research ethics - livestock farming - dietary choices - policy advocacy Key Concepts moral complexity utilitarianism compassion Questions to Reflect On - How do you navigate moral gray areas in daily life? - What compromises are acceptable when values conflict? A Different Perspective Balancing compassion with practicality can be challenging and may face criticism from extremes. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Animal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animal/) [Big heart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/big-heart/) [Love Animals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love-animals/) [Medical research](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/medical-research/) ## Related quotes > [“All animals deserve respect.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-blakeway/all-animals-deserve-respect/) Jim Blakeway > [INK NOT MINK!! 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Has nature arranged for this animal to have all the machinery of feelings only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/answer-me-you-who-believe-that-animals-are-only-machines-has-nature/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [“He didn't believe animals could think, not in the way he defined the term, but he wasn't much impressed with human thinking, either. He…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-joy-fowler/he-didn-t-believe-animals-could-think-not-in-the-way-he-defined-the/) [Karen Joy Fowler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-joy-fowler/) ## More by Emily Anthes > [“We’ve always had strong moral responsibility, or we should have had, to other species,’ says Richard Twine, the British sociologist. ‘We just haven’t exercised…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-anthes/we-ve-always-had-strong-moral-responsibility-or-we-should-have-had-to/) [Emily Anthes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-anthes/) > [“… To many biologists, cloning is all sizzle and no substance, a high-tech spectacle that fails to address habitat loss, poaching, pollution, and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-anthes/to-many-biologists-cloning-is-all-sizzle-and-no-substance-a-high-tech/) [Emily Anthes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-anthes/) > [“Take tail docking…in which the last several inches of a puppy’s tail are removed, usually without anesthesia, sometimes with extremely crude instruments such as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-anthes/take-tail-docking-in-which-the-last-several-inches-of-a-puppy-s-tail/) [Emily Anthes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-anthes/) > [“Over the generations, we have bred and inbred our canine companions to the point of disease and deformity. One analysis of popular dog breeds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-anthes/over-the-generations-we-have-bred-and-inbred-our-canine-companions-to/) [Emily Anthes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-anthes/) > [“The important thing is that we do not throw the genetically modified baby out with the bathwater. We spend so much time discussing the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-anthes/the-important-thing-is-that-we-do-not-throw-the-genetically-modified/) [Emily Anthes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-anthes/) > [“Linguists have long debated the links between language, culture, and cognition. The theory of linguistic relativity posits that language itself—the specific tongue that we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-anthes/linguists-have-long-debated-the-links-between-language-culture-and/) [Emily Anthes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-anthes/) > [“As Rollin put it in his book The Frankenstein Syndrome, ‘It is simply false that all genetic engineering must harm animals. 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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 > [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": "“The troubled middle is…a place where it’s possible to truly love animals and still accept their occasional role as resources, objects, and tools. Those of us in the troubled middle believe that animals deserve to be treated well, but we don’t want to ban their use in medical research. 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