animal rights

Animal welfare under socialism: Anthropocentrism, instrumentalization, and ideology in the GDR

Dr hab. Martyna Łaszewska-Hellriegel, prof. UZ

University of Zielona Góra

Pomeranian University of Słupsk

English abstract: This article investigates the German Democratic Republic’s (GDR) approach to animal welfare through the lens of Marxist ideology, focusing on the tension between utilitarian principles and anthropocentric values. It aims to analyze how the GDR’s socialist framework, which prioritized collective welfare and economic productivity, influenced its policies toward animals, often reducing them to mere instruments for human benefit. The study assumes that the GDR’s Marxist ideology shaped its policies and practices, including those related to animal welfare. It employs a methodological approach that comprises an analysis of official state policies, propaganda materials, and dissenting voices from that period. By examining these sources, the article seeks to uncover the ideological underpinnings and practical outcomes of the GDR’s approach to animal welfare. The research reveals that the GDR’s animal welfare policies were deeply rooted in anthropocentrism and utilitarianism, prioritizing industrial efficiency and agricultural output over ethical considerations. Despite its socialist rhetoric, the GDR often treated animals as economic resources, highlighting a contradiction between its professed commitment to socialist humanism and its actual treatment of non-human beings. The study also identifies broader ideological conflicts inherent in applying Marxist principles to animal welfare, particularly the difficulty in reconciling economic priorities with ethical concerns. This article contributes to the growing field of interspecies ethics by providing a unique examination of animal welfare within a state socialist system. It offers new insights into the complexities of applying Marxist ideology to non-human entities, shedding light on the tensions between utilitarian practices and ethical imperatives. By analysing the GDR’s approach, the study not only enriches historical understanding but also provides a framework for contemporary discussions on sustainable agriculture, animal rights, and the ethical dimensions of human-animal relationships.

Keywords: GDR (German Democratic Republic), animal welfare, Marxist ideology, anthropocentrism, utilitarianism, animal rights

Language: English

Published: Number 3(44)/2025, pp. 20-37.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.36280/AFPiFS.2025.3.20

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Number of downloads: 55

This text is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

From Legal Protection Towards Animal Rights: Between Moral and Legal Consciousness. Evolution of Approach on the Example of Administrative Case Law

Dr hab. Anna Kalisz, mgr Dorota Pawlicka

Maria Curie-Skłodowska University in Lublin, Supreme Administrative Court

English abstract: The aim of the article is to analyse the possibility and necessity of empowering animals as ‘non-personal’ legal subjects under Polish law, indicating the relevant case law (of ordinary and, mainly, administrative courts). The research assumption is the statement that, although administrative case law contains elements of a fairly progressive approach that results in an interpretation of the applicable provisions on the protection and (rudimentarily regulated) animal rights, the existing provisions are far from sufficient and leave quite a lot of room for a very flexible interpretation. That may lead not solely to an animal-friendly interpretation, but also to abuses against them. Therefore, postulated amendments concerning constitutional protection of animal rights deserve attention, as they would be important for the systemic interpretation of law. The research subject is both philosophical and legal literature, as well as case law. The main method is the logico-linguistic analysis (with some elements of historical and comparative approach) of texts on philosophy, including legal philosophy and ethics, as well as the analysis of case law. The research findings have a mixed, descriptive-and-normative character, while the above combination of ethics, legal theory, and legal practice both manifests the evolution of the approach to the titular matter and makes an original contribution to jurisprudence as a scientific discipline.

Keywords: social consciousness, sentient animals, legal protection of animals, animal rights, constitutional protection, administrative case law

Language: Polish

Published: Number 2(31)/2022, pp. 38-53.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.36280/AFPiFS.2022.2.38

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Number of downloads: 318

This text is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution – Non Commercial – No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.

David DeGrazia on Animal Rights: A Critical Analysis

Dr Michał Pełka

University of Warsaw

English abstract: The article aims to critically discuss the theory of animal rights developed by American social philosopher David DeGrazia. It consists of two parts. The first one describes the main elements of DeGrazia’s approach, namely his views on animal minds, the principle of equal consideration, the idea of unequal moral status, the concept of border persons, and practical remarks concerning improving the treatment of animals by humans. The second part presents remarks about the points where DeGrazia’s proposals should be supplemented and corrected so as to make them more convincing and widely accepted. The conclusion of the essay is the proposal of a cultural revolution for the benefit of animals, which should be initiated by famous people, like actresses, actors, sportswomen and sportsmen, because of their influential position in contemporary societies.

Keywords: border persons, animal rights, cultural revolution, moral status, equal consideration principle, David DeGrazia

Language: Original printed in Polish, English translation available below

Published: Number 1(22)/2020, pp. 52-65.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.36280/AFPiFS.2020.1.52ENG

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Number of downloads: 397

Kant, Korsgaard and the Moral Status of Animals

Prof. dr hab. Tomasz Pietrzykowski

University of Silesia

English abstract: The paper discusses the views of Christine Korsgaard – one of leading modern Kantian moral philosophers – on the proper status of sentient animals. Famously, Kantian moral theory is considered as much less favorable to the idea of animal rights than the competing utilitarian tradition. Ch. Korsgaard however reexamines the foundations of Kantian ethics and comes to the conclusion that their best reading implies (contrary to Kant’s own beliefs) that not only humans but also sentient animals deserve to be treated as ends in themselves. Her interpretation and development of Kantian ethics aims to reconcile it with modern philosophical naturalism and contemporary scientific knowledge on the nature of living creatures. Ch. Korsgaard proposes convincing comprehensive picture of naturalistic axiology and its ethical implications. Nonetheless, I raise two important objections that her views seem to give rise to – concerning the nature of human and non-human subjective selves as well as relation between moral and legal rights. The paper is based mainly on the opinions presented by Ch. Korsgaard during the 3-days seminar held in Oxford (2014) devoted to discussion of her views on the status and rights of animals from the perspective of Kantian ethics as well as on her numerous writings related to the subject.

Keywords: Christine Korsgaard, Immanual Kant, Kantianism, animal rights

Language: Polish

Published: Number 2(11)/2015, p. 106-119.

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Number of downloads: 503