ABSTRACT
After rejecting the suggestion that concern for animals is typically a symptom of misanthropy, the chapter illustrates the two strategies the misanthrope employs to reach a negative verdict on humankind – a comparison of human beings with animals and attention to how we treat animals. The relevance of the second strategy is clear, and the misanthrope argues for the importance of the first by endorsing Hume’s claim that judgement on humankind is necessarily comparative in nature. The final sections of the chapter discuss two issues that need to be addressed before the misanthrope’s case can proceed – whether human beings are themselves animals, and which animals are relevant to consider when comparing them with humans and reflecting on humans’ treatment of animals.
