ABSTRACT
Classical welfarism movement (associated with early campaigners in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries) rejected the opinion of especially René Descartes who described animals as mere machines. Against this view, welfarists argued that, whether or not they possessed a soul or the capacity to reason, animals are vulnerable to pain and suffering and able to experience pleasure and happiness. This is contrasted with ‘new welfarism’ which, frustrated by the failures of classic welfarism, advocates the humane treatment of animals, but rejects the supposition that all human interests carry greater moral sway than those of nonhumans. The chapter considers, in particular, the position adopted by Robert Garner which is criticised by Gary Francione (whose abolitionist approach is the subject of Chapter 8).
