Vegan Soapbox » utilitarianism

Hedonism And Sacrifice

Eccentric Vegan — Sun, 22 Aug 2010 14:11:04 +0000

One vegan claims that vegans’ “lives are motivated by more than mere hedonism.” I’m sure many vegans do not subscribe to hedonism. I’m guessing some do.

First, what is hedonism?

Here is the description from Wikipedia below. (Admittedly, this definition is a bit simplistic. But for our purposes today, it will do just fine).

Hedonism is a school which argues that pleasure is the only intrinsic good. This is often used as a justification for evaluating actions in terms of how much pleasure and how little pain (i.e. suffering) they produce. In very simple terms, a hedonist strives to maximize this net pleasure (pleasure minus pain).

Looking a little deeper into the Wikipedia entry, lo and behold, I found this:

hedonism is not necessarily related to egoism. The utilitarianism of John Stuart Mill is sometimes classified as a type of hedonism, as it judges the morality of actions by their consequent contributions to the greater good and happiness of all. This is altruistic hedonism. Whereas some hedonistic doctrines propose doing whatever makes an individual happiest (over the long run), Mill promotes actions which make everyone happy. [...] It is true that Epicurus recommends for us to pursue our own pleasure, but he never suggests we should live a selfish life which impedes others from getting to that same objective.

Utilitarianism is the philosophy used by Peter Singer to necessitate a version of animal rights that promotes veganism in his book Animal Liberation. And what Jack Norris suggests in the interview at Let Them Eat Meat sounds a lot like a kind of utilitarianism, which promotes a hedonism for both the individual and the collective:

Animals’ lives matter to themselves and they matter to me. [...] I suffer knowing that right now there are warehouses with tens of thousands of chickens scrambling frantically to escape from wire cages that are digging into their bodies, or pigs who have not been allowed to turn around or walk in months.

Suffering:

The anti-vegan response is “I suffer trying to be vegan. It’s too much of a sacrifice.” Indeed,the anti-vegan who interviewed Norris said as much”

“Suffering reduction is one way to improve the world, but increasing pleasure might be another way. Does the pleasure humans get from animal products, and the sacrifices vegans make to be vegan, figure into the calculation of suffering? If so, could that make a lifestyle that includes humanely raised animal products more appealing than veganism, which requires a larger sacrifice for its reduction in suffering?”

Setting aside the issue of rights versus welfare or utilitarianism, now let’s consider the issue of sacrifice. Is veganism a sacrifice?

1. Any lifestyle change requires some discomfort. Veganism is no different. Since when did starting an exercise routine feel like anything other than sacrifice? But after your strength grows or your fat shrinks the exercise program feels like a sacrifice that’s well worth the effort.

2. For many vegans, particularly those who have been vegan for many years or who have grown up vegan, avoiding animal products does not require any sacrifice at all. It’s so natural and normal for them that it’s just another everyday thing. You can count me as one of those vegans. There may have been an initial learning period where vegans felt like it was a sacrifice to be vegan, but many vegans are long over that transition period. Now it’s just another part of life, like brushing one’s teeth and checking email.

3. Likewise, for vegans who enjoy cooking or baking, veganism has challenged their skills and excited their palates. Many vegans says they eat a wider variety of foods after going vegan because avoiding animal products forced them to try new cuisines. The pleasure they’ve experienced as vegans far outweighs any real or perceived sacrifices.

4. Even if veganism is a sacrifice today, it won’t be one tomorrow. The more vegans there are in existence, the easier it will be to be vegan. The difficulties with veganism simply evaporate when society has a large vegan population.

Can you think of more reasons why veganism is not a sacrifice?

A Basic Vegan Glossary – 20 Terms

Eccentric Vegan — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 18:56:41 +0000

Vegan - person who seeks to exclude the use of animals for food, clothing, or any other purpose. This is basically the definition provided by those who coined the word “vegan”, the Vegan Society. Veganism is not just a dietary choice, it is a lifestyle, because vegans exclude all animal uses (as much as they possibly can). Many vegans do not believe animals should be property and for them, veganism represents a pro-animal philosophy. Veganism is the praxis of philosophies that regard animals’ interests as ethically relevant. The word “vegan” has been misused by some people who choose a plant-based diet for purely heath or other reasons.* Though veganism has health, environmental, and social benefits, veganism is about excluding animal products and would not permit healthy or environmentally-friendly animal uses.
Vegetarian, Ethical Vegetarian - a vegetarian is simply someone who eats a plant-based diet. However, an ethical vegetarian is a person who excludes the killing of animals for food, clothing, or any other purpose. Ethical vegetarians do not believe animals should suffer and oppose the killing of animals, not the use of animals. They may have additional reasons for their vegetarianism, but if they have no concern for animals, ethical vegetarian is not the best word to describe their lifestyle.*
Veg*n – the inclusive term referring to both vegans and vegetarians. For example, it may be used to describe a group of combined people or it may be used to describe someone transitioning from vegetarianism to veganism or someone who is 80% vegan.
Pescatarian, Beegan, Flexitarian - these are some of the many terms given to people who do not fully subscribe to the vegan or vegetarian philosophy and who practice some modification thereof. Pescatarians eat fish, but not land animals or flying animals. Beegans eat honey but no other animal products. Flexitarians eat as vegans when it is convenient or socially acceptable. None of these lifestyles are vegan lifestyles and they are not rightly associated with veganism. All of these terms are mostly diet-descriptive terms and may not reflect a total philosophy.
Speciesism - “is analogous to racism and sexism, represents: a] The prevalent ideology and bias that prevents equal consideration for nonhuman interests — despite our shared sentience. b] Exclusion from membership within moral community based upon the morally irrelevant criterion of species. c] Discriminatory practices and behaviors that stem from the preceding points.” writes Nathan at Vegan Abolitionist.
Animal rights – the notion that animals deserve to pursue their own interests. The concept that animals’ interests matter and that humans do not have the right to impose their will upon animals. Animal rights is about incorporating animals into our ethical philosophy and respecting their desires to live, to be free, and to pursue their natural desires.
Animal liberation - the movement of humans to respect the interests of animals. It tends to include all forms of animal activism: liberation from suffering or “inhumane” treatment to actual, physical liberation from property status.
Abolition - ending all animal use and exploitation. The abolitionist mantra is animals are not property. This is the goal of many vegans, to abolish the property status of animals. “a] Termination of all breeding and domestication, while care is provided for every nonhuman already bred or captured (that cannot be reintroduced or returned) — until age related deaths occur. b] Cessation of all direct relations between humans and nonhumans. c] The non-interventionist, relatively peaceful future implied by the preceding points.” wrote Nathan at Vegan Abolitionist.
Welfarism - The movement to reduce or abolish animal suffering, but not use and exploitation. That is, welfarists are concerned with how humans treat animals. Welfarism is often at odds with abolition, though not always.
Incrementalism - slow change. In the abolition movement, examples of incrementalism are abolishing foie gras, veal, seal hunting, dogfighting, and other specific animal uses. In the welfarist movement, examples of incrementalism are abolishing veal crates, battery cages, and other specific animal treatments.
Revolution - big change. The building blocks of revolution is seed planting. People who want to see a revolutionary change in our use and treatment of animals will plant seeds of change in other people and spread the revolutionary philosophy. For vegans, this means spreading the philosophy of veganism. This means inspiring others to become vegan so that one day there will be enough vegans to create a real revolution.
Humane - a word used by the welfarist movement in order to reduce animal suffering. The word has since been co-opted by anti-animal organizations to describe less cruel methods of slaughter, caging, hunting, etc. and thus the word “humane” has nearly no meaning any longer and is more of a marketing term than anything else.
Happy meat - describes the meat produced by so-called humane meat producers. The term is deliberately an oxymoron, for meat cannot be happy, it is dead. The term “happy meat” reflects the less obvious oxymoron that is “humane meat.”
Cruelty-free – Originally used to reflect an intention to avoid animal use, the term has merit in describing some products not tested on animals, but the term should be read with caution because it’s been co-opted by animal-exploitative industries. For example, in the US, the term “cruelty-free” has no legal definition and can be applied to any product without penalty. Read more here.
Utilitarianism - an ethical philosophy aimed at maximizing pleasure and minimizing pain. This is the type animal liberation envisioned by Peter Singer. It is welfarism, in that it allows animal use, but it is not the usual welfarism, in that it regards human and animal interests equally. Utilitarianism, by definition, is not a rights-based philosophy for either humans or animals, and thus should not be described as “animal rights.”
Open rescue – peaceful animal liberation. These are nonviolent acts of civil disobedience. An act of open rescue is to treat animals as if they deserve to pursue their own interests and then to accept the legal consequences of that behavior. For example, some one who rescues dogs from a puppymill without the permission of the legal owner or the legal authorities. An open rescue often takes place in daylight, without masks, someone films the rescue, and the rescue is often broadcast on the web or elsewhere. The person responsible for the rescue freely admits what they have done and will accept the legal consequences because they believe it was the right thing to do and the law is wrong, not the rescuer. You can read more about open rescue at openrescue.org.
Direct action – the encompassing term for almost all forms of activism, including everything from strikes, boycotts, sit-ins, and street theater, to violent warfare. Direct action is all activism for social change that doesn’t rely on voting or representatives. Direct action is all violent and nonviolent civil disobedience. Friends of Animals says, “Veganism is direct action” and they are right. Animal Liberation Front often performs direct action of other sorts.
Animal rights activist – someone who acts on behalf of the interests of animals, usually from an abolitionist perspective, though the media is often confused about the differences between abolition and welfarism and may call acts of animal welfare “animal rights.”
Animal advocate – the inclusive term referring to all people who act on behalf of animals, from those people who advocate for better treatment of animals (animal welfare) to those people who advocate cessation of animal use and property status (abolition/ animal rights).
Companion animal – the preferred term for “pet” when the person responsible for the animal’s care is someone dedicated to animal liberation. This term reflects the intended meaning that animals treated as pets are a part of the family and are not the property of humans. Thus, one may not allow their companion animal to engage in activities like dogfighting, nor may they kill their companion animal for food.

*Some people may use the terms “vegan” or “vegetarian” to describe a lifestyle that is not related to animal use, but that still happens to exclude the use of animals for food. This is veganism as a diet, only, not as a lifestyle. I prefer to call this lifestyle choice plant-based or veganesque rather than vegan, (but they’d, obviously, disagree).

Notice: this post have been edited multiple times.