ABSTRACT
In this chapter I explore Schopenhauer's animal ethics against the background of his twofold principle of ethical virtue and the ascetic-pessimistic character of his philosophy. In the first of its three sections, I elaborate on the relationship between the virtue of justice and that of Menschenliebe; in the second I note how Schopenhauer's approach draws attention to deep differences in our ethical responsibilities towards animals we own, and often have bred into existence, and animals in the wild; and in the third I suggest a promising, coherent way in which Schopenhauer might reconcile his prizing of world-renouncing salvation as the only genuinely valuable human accomplishment there is with his concern for the welfare of animals.
