Animals and Modern Cultures

Book excerpt: The dramatic transformation of relationships between humans and animals in the 20th century are investigated in this fascinating and accessible book. At the beginning of this century these relationships were dominated by human needs and interests, modernization was a project which was attached to the goal of progress and animals were merely resources to be used on the path towards human fulfilment. These relationships are increasingly being subjected to criticism and a new field of interest in human-animal relationships has opened up. We are now urged to be more sensitive and compassionate to animal needs and interests, to understand their mindedness and how their lives and ours are entangled. This book focuses on social change and animals, it is concerned with how humans relate to animals and how this has changed and why. Moreover, it highlights, through chapters on companion animals, hunting and fishing, animal leisures such as birdwatching and wildlife parks, and the meat and livestock industries, how attitudes and practices towards animals vary widely according to social class, ethnicity, gender, region and nation.