ABSTRACT
The focus of this chapter is on the opposition to the very idea of rights launched from a variety of quarters. It returns to the argument that because nonhumans cannot be subject to duties, they are incapable of being right-holders. It explores six principal attitudes or standpoints that stand in the way of the acceptance of rights for animals: anthropocentricism (considering the debate between Judge Posner and Peter Singer); animals as property (with particular reference to Roman law); legal personhood (and the attempts to obtain legal standing for animals); relational arguments (especially the case advanced by Donaldson and Kymlicka); the redundancy of rights (the positions adopted by Regan and Frey are examined); and certain ideological objections (which are discussed in Chapter 5).
