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What Are Zoos For?

Series: What Is It For?
Brief Description
Are zoos an anachronism in the 21st century when we can watch animals in their natural habitat, close-up from our couches without worrying about cruelty? Should they go the way of other bygone era 'spectacles' and 'attractions' that we now regard as barbaric? There are vocal... Read More
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Heather Browning and Walter Veit test the common justifications for zoos (entertainment, education, research, conservation) against the evidence and suggest what the best zoos of the future should look like to ensure that they are primarily for animals and not just for people.

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Are zoos an anachronism in the 21st century when we can watch animals in their natural habitat, close-up from our couches without worrying about cruelty? Should they go the way of other bygone era 'spectacles' and 'attractions' that we now regard as barbaric? There are vocal campaigners and activists who believe so.

Heather Browning and Walter Veit disagree, but they acknowledge there is a case to be answered. In What Are Zoos For?, they test the common justifications for zoosβ€”entertainment, education, research, and conservationβ€”against the evidence and suggest what the best zoos of the future should look like to ensure that they are primarily for animals and not just for people.

Series: What Is It For?

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  • What Are Zoos For?
    Are zoos an anachronism in the 21st century when we can watch animals in their natural habitat, close-up from our couches without worrying about cruelty? Should they go the way of other bygone era 'spectacles' and 'attractions' that we now regard as barbaric? There are vocal campaigners and activists who believe so. Heather Browning and Walter Veit disagree, but they...
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    Does the British monarchy still have a place in today's society? Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's exit cast light on institutional racism, Prince Andrew's alleged sexual abuse highlighted troubling attitudes towards gender and power, while the abolition of the monarchy in Barbados accentuated its relationship to colonialism. But what is the monarchy actually for? Does it benefit the UK, or...
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  • What Are Museums For?
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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781529231045

Publisher: Bristol University Press

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 26 November 2024

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Bristol University Press

Illustration: 12 Halftones, black and white; 15 Illustrations, black and white

Audience: General / adult, Professional and scholarly

DIMENSIONS

Width: 127.0mm

Height: 203.0mm

Weight: 250g

Pages: 156

About the Author

Heather Browning is a Lecturer in Philosophy at the University of Southampton, working on philosophical questions in animal welfare, sentience, and ethics. She previously worked as a zookeeper and zoo animal welfare officer in Australia and New Zealand.

Walter Veit is a Lecturer in Philosophy at the University of Reading. His primary research interests lie in the intersection of the biological, social, and mind sciences and empirically informed philosophy and ethics.

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