--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If animals are no longer quite outside…" description: "\"If animals are no longer quite outside the moral sphere, they are still in a special section near the outer rim. Their interests are allowed to count o..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c70/peter-singer-1001_animal_if-animals-are-no-longer-quite-outside-t_361359.jpg" --- # If animals are no longer quite outside the moral sphere… ![“If animals are no longer quite outside the moral sphere, they are still in a special section near the outer rim. Their interests are allowed to count only when they do not clash with human interests. If there is a clash - even a clash between a lifetime of suffering for a nonhuman animal and the…” quote by Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c70/peter-singer-1001_animal_if-animals-are-no-longer-quite-outside-t_361359.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c70/peter-singer-1001_animal_if-animals-are-no-longer-quite-outside-t_361359.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c70/peter-singer-1001_animal_if-animals-are-no-longer-quite-outside-t_361359.jpg) > “If animals are no longer quite outside the moral sphere, they are still in a special section near the outer rim. Their interests are allowed to count only when they do not clash with human interests. If there is a clash - even a clash between a lifetime of suffering for a nonhuman animal and the gastronomic preference of a human being - the interests of the nonhuman are disregarded. The moral attitudes of the past are too deeply embedded in our thought and our practices to be upset by a mere change in our knowledge of ourselves and of other animals.” [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Animals are excluded from moral consideration unless they don't conflict with human interests, reflecting deep‑seated anthropocentrism. **In simple terms:** Human interests dominate moral decisions over animals. Key Takeaway Challenge anthropocentric biases in ethical choices. Themes ethics animal rights anthropocentrism Mood critical thought‑provoking Type philosophical activist When to use this quote - dietary choices - policy making - activism - education Key Concepts moral philosophy speciesism environmental ethics Questions to Reflect On - What personal habits reflect animal bias? - How can societies restructure moral frameworks? A Different Perspective Changing entrenched attitudes requires systemic cultural shifts. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Animal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animal/) [Animal liberation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animal-liberation/) [Animals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animals/) [Attitude](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attitude/) [Character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) [Clash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/clash/) [Human beings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-beings/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Interest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/interest/) [Liberation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/liberation/) [Lifetime](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lifetime/) [Moral](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moral/) [Past](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/past/) [Practice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/practice/) [Preference](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/preference/) [Suffering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suffering/) ## Related quotes > [So far as this argument is concerned nonhuman animals and infants and retarded humans are in the same category; and if we use this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/so-far-as-this-argument-is-concerned-nonhuman-animals-and-infants-and/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [What is there about the notion of a person, at law, that makes every living member of the species Homo sapiens a person, irrespective…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/what-is-there-about-the-notion-of-a-person-at-law-that-makes-every/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [The newspapers do little better. Their coverage of nonhuman animals is dominated by "human interest" events like the birth of a baby gorilla at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/the-newspapers-do-little-better-their-coverage-of-nonhuman-animals-is/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [The child is a realist in every domain of thought, and it is therefore natural that in the moral sphere he should lay more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-piaget/the-child-is-a-realist-in-every-domain-of-thought-and-it-is-therefore/) [Jean Piaget](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-piaget/) > [In the moral sphere, every act of justice or charity involves putting ourselves in the other person's place and thus transcending our own competitive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis/in-the-moral-sphere-every-act-of-justice-or-charity-involves-putting/) [C. S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis/) > [“To achieve peace, destruction is delivered. 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I can understand this as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tariq-ramadan/there-is-a-claim-coming-from-the-west-that-says-that-all-art-must-be/) [Tariq Ramadan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tariq-ramadan/) > [For most humans, especially for those in modern urban and suburban communities, the most direct form of contact with nonhuman animals is at meal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/for-most-humans-especially-for-those-in-modern-urban-and-suburban/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [There is no doubt that there is a huge difference between human and nonhuman animals. But what we are overlooking is the fact that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/there-is-no-doubt-that-there-is-a-huge-difference-between-human-and/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [The animal liberation movement is saying that where animals and humans have similar interests - we might take the interest in avoiding physical pain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/the-animal-liberation-movement-is-saying-that-where-animals-and/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [By ceasing to rear and kill animals for food, we can make so much extra food available for humans that, properly distributed, it would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/by-ceasing-to-rear-and-kill-animals-for-food-we-can-make-so-much/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [It may be thought justifiable to require tests on animals of potentially life-saving drugs, but the same kinds of tests are used for products…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/it-may-be-thought-justifiable-to-require-tests-on-animals-of/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) ## More by Peter Singer > [I have never really been fond of animals. I certainly wasn't an 'animal lover' when I became involved in the movement. I just came…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/i-have-never-really-been-fond-of-animals-i-certainly-wasn-t-an-animal/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [Knowledge is generally considered a good thing; so, presumably, knowing more about how the U.S. thinks and operates around the world is also good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/knowledge-is-generally-considered-a-good-thing-so-presumably-knowing/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [The price we are willing to pay for safety cannot be infinite. 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Once we take the first step, the distance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/beginning-to-reason-is-like-stepping-onto-an-escalator-that-leads/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [“Population growth is not a reason against giving aid but a reason for reconsidering the kind of aid to give.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/population-growth-is-not-a-reason-against-giving-aid-but-a-reason-for/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [Well the real concept of basic needs if you cut it right down are simply the physical needs that are unavoidable for all of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/well-the-real-concept-of-basic-needs-if-you-cut-it-right-down-are/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [“Dairy farmers routinely remove calves from their mothers at an early age so that the milk will be available for humans; anyone who has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/dairy-farmers-routinely-remove-calves-from-their-mothers-at-an-early/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [Attempts to defend amusement parks and circuses on the grounds that they 'educate' people about animals should not be taken seriously. Such enterprises are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/attempts-to-defend-amusement-parks-and-circuses-on-the-grounds-that/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [“A consequence of this alienation of humans from their own nature is that they are also alienated from each other. Productive activity becomes ‘activity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/a-consequence-of-this-alienation-of-humans-from-their-own-nature-is/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [“I argued against the view that the only obligation we have to strangers is to avoid harming them; but even if we were to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/i-argued-against-the-view-that-the-only-obligation-we-have-to/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [I believe that in this new world that we live in, we often have a responsibility, you know, to actually go beyond the thou…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/i-believe-that-in-this-new-world-that-we-live-in-we-often-have-a/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [It may be thought justifiable to require tests on animals of potentially life-saving drugs, but the same kinds of tests are used for products…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/it-may-be-thought-justifiable-to-require-tests-on-animals-of/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) [Explore all 310 Peter Singer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) ## More Animal quotes > [I was 3-years-old - to this day it is a vivid memory. 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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? 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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": "If animals are no longer quite outside the moral sphere, they are still in a special section near the outer rim. Their interests are allowed to count only when they do not clash with human interests. If there is a clash - even a clash between a lifetime of suffering for a nonhuman animal and the gastronomic preference of a human being - the interests of the nonhuman are disregarded. 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