David Curnutt Case Study

1951 Words4 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Slavery an ethical dilemma

Question 1. (690 Words) Curnutt believes that the prima facie wrongness of animal-eating has not been defeated by additional factors which serve as the overriding reason. From his argument, David Curnutt claims that animal-eating is Ultima facia morally wrong. He further explains there are at least four grounds for overriding this wrong which include traditional-cultural, aesthetic, convenience, nutrition. First, Animal-eating is a social practice that embeds well in today 's culture. Slavery and racism used to be part of modern culture at their time of occurrence; however, having that status is not what makes practices morally right or wrong. Take Slavery for example. It is wrong because it requires the coercion and degrading of innocent …show more content…

The general public 's desire to eat animals and its status within a variety of social functions encourage the inexpensive and quick supply of meat. Again, this seems to say nothing about whether or not animal-eating is morally permissible. According to David Curnutt (2013), “It is often inconvenient and very difficult to keep a promise or discharge a parental duty or make a sacrifice for a stranger—or a friend. Few of us believe that convenience and ease have much of anything to do with whether these actions are morally right or wrong so why should it be different when it comes to killing animals for food?” (Disputed Moral Issues p. …show more content…

Recent discussion regarding nutrition has focused on the question of the adequacy of a meatless diet for overall health. This probably provides the best reason for overriding the wrongness of killing animals. Curnutt asks his audience to understand that no moral agent can be required to destroy your health for the sake of others; therefore, a diet having this consequence is not morally justified. Does vegetarianism put an individual 's health at serious risk? Kathryn Paxton George has argued that a vegetarian diet would make several people worse off in their overall well-being than they would otherwise be if they ate animals. Evelyn Pluhar has disputed many of George’s findings by arguing that vitamin and mineral supplementation; as well as appropriate plan sources will alleviate any deficiencies. George then responded that Pluhar had either misinterpreted or willingly ignored certain facts of the studies she had cited

Show More
Related

  • More Pros Than Cons In A Meat-Free Life Analysis

    125 Words  | 1 Pages

    The argumentative article “More Pros than Cons in a Meat-Free Life” authored by Marjorie Lee Garretson was published in the student newspaper of the University of Mississippi in April 2010. In Garretson’s article, she said that a vegetarian lifestyle is the healthy life choice and how many people don’t know how the environment is affected by their eating habits. She argues how the animal factory farms mistreat the animals in an inhumane way in order to be sources of food. Although, she did not really achieve the aim she wants it for this article, she did not do a good job in trying to convince most of the readers to become vegetarian because of her writing style and the lack of information of vegetarian

    Read More

  • Mad Cowboy

    2443 Words  | 5 Pages

    I will first show the lack of validity and soundness to Howard’s claim that A) a vegan lifestyle is a healthier choice and B) his claim that one must switch to that lifestyle to enjoy these said benefits. To the claim made in A, Howard uses his own health problems he endured on his meat diet, and uses it as a constant variable comparing it to his now relative healthy lifestyle as a vegan. On first glance anyone who eats a calorie-laden, unbalanced diet and ends up weighing 300 pounds, as Lyman himself admitted, will have health problems regardless of his orientation to meat or vegetables. With this said his comparing analogy is inertly flawed and must be disregarded from the argument he presents. On march 8 before the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee, Mary K Young, MS.,R.D,NCBA Director of Nutrition Research and Information, presented the benefits of eating meat. Using Data from the 1995 USDA Continuing Survey of Food Intakes by Individuals (CSI) she confirms that red meat enhances one overall diet quality. Young goes on to point out that red meat is the number one source for protein, B12, and zinc, number 2 source for B6 and third greatest source for iron, niacin and potassium. She also pointed out that red meat alone has the greatest concentrates of iron and zinc together. Also included cited in Young’s report was the research recently published in the Journal of the American...

    Read More

  • Summary Of Why I Stopped Being A Vegetarian By Laura Fraser

    971 Words  | 2 Pages

    In her Salon.com essay, “Why I Stopped Being a Vegetarian,” writer Laura Fraser uses her own life experiences to explain why she became a vegetarian, what it did to her, and why she decided to go back to being an omnivore. Fraser’s main idea was that even though being a vegetarian might be slightly healthier than a “usual diet”, and that people should not go against what they are made for. Fraser explains why being a vegetarian can be healthier for people in some places, why it is hard to be a full vegetarian, and why it is a good idea to not go against humans natural ways as a human being. By establishing her personal view and facts that she has researched, and appealing to emotions and logic in some ways, Fraser succeeds in writing an

    Read More

  • Jonathan Safran Foer Eating Animals Rhetorical Analysis

    776 Words  | 2 Pages

    Jonathan Safran Foer wrote “Eating Animals” for his son; although, when he started writing it was not meant to be a book (Foer). More specifically to decide whether he would raise his son as a vegetarian or meat eater and to decide what stories to tell his son (Foer). The book was meant to answer his question of what meat is and how we get it s well as many other questions. Since the book is a quest for knowledge about the meat we eat, the audience for this book is anyone that consumes food. This is book is filled with research that allows the audience to question if we wish to continue to eat meat or not and provide answers as to why. Throughout the book Foer uses healthy doses of logos and pathos to effectively cause his readers to question if they will eat meat at their next meal and meals that follow. Foer ends his book with a call to action that states “Consistency is not required, but engagement with the problem is.” when dealing with the problem of factory farming (Foer).

    Read More

  • Vegetarianism

    1344 Words  | 3 Pages

    “Let food be thy medicine and thy medicine be thy food.” stated Hippocrates, the father of Western medicine, 460-377 BC (Silverstone 15). Every American should live by this quote, but things have drastically changed since Hippocrates voiced that divine statement . Nowadays peoples personification of health has nothing to do with what we consume on an everyday basis. Our generation, most certainly will drive straight to McDonalds’s for a Big Mac without hesitation of the harm it is doing to your body. Education of health is essential; people need to learn what they are eating and how it will affect them in the long run. Due to mega rich corporations and institutions, they are keeping all of us in this denial because of pouring millions of dollars into efforts to keep us from knowing what is truly going on (Silverstone 16). Whether it’s to help reduce your risk of diseases, or purely to attain better health, leaving farmed animals entirely out of your diet is an effortless decision with life-long benefits. Plant-based diets will strengthen your immune system, beautify your skin, increase your energy, and reduce risk of various diseases (Silverstone 1). Being vegetarian is a step in the right direction by protecting your health, animals, and the environment.

    Read More

  • Ethics and Morality in Vegetarianism

    1942 Words  | 4 Pages

    Realizing the necessity of refraining from meat is especially difficult because people consume it for a long time, and in addition, there is a certain attitude to the meat as to the product that is useful, nourishing and even prestigious. On the other hand, the constant consumption of meat has made the vast majority of people completely emotionless towards it. However, there must be some real and strong reasons for refusal to consume meat and as I noticed they were always completely different. So, even though vegetarianism has evolved drastically over time, some of its current forms have come back full circle to resemble that of its roots, when vegetarianism was an ethical-philosophical choice, not merely a matter of personal health. As believed, vegetarianism was originally founded in ancient India and was generally formed on ethical and moral issues.

    Read More

  • Ethical Eating Meat Essay

    805 Words  | 2 Pages

    In conclusion, eating meat is still unethical, because even with these changes that the cattlemen and ranchers have done over the years, trying to improve the industry, it cannot make up for the damage done. There are animals still suffering and being tortured and more should be done to help them. These are some of the reasons I have for not eating meat; it’s my own personal choice. And I choose to be meat-free.

    Read More

  • Should We Be Vegetarians?

    1159 Words  | 3 Pages

    In this paper I will look at the argument made by James Rachels in his paper, The Moral Argument for Vegetarianism supporting the view that humans should be vegetarians on moral grounds. I will first outline the basis of Rachels’ argument supporting vegetarianism and his moral objection to using animals as a food source and critique whether it is a good argument. Secondly, I will look at some critiques of this kind of moral argument presented by R. G. Frey in his article, Moral Vegetarianism and the Argument from Pain and Suffering. Finally, I will show why I support the argument made by Frey and why I feel it is the stronger of the two arguments and why I support it.

    Read More

  • Why Eating Meat is Morally Impermissible

    1449 Words  | 3 Pages

    Is it morally permissible to eat meat? Much argument has arisen in the current society on whether it is morally permissible to eat meat. Many virtuous fruitarians and the other meat eating societies have been arguing about the ethics of eating meat (which results from killing animals). The important part of the dispute is based on the animal welfare, nutrition value from meat, convenience, and affordability of meat-based foods compared to vegetable-based foods and other factors like environmental moral code, culture, and religion. All these points are important in justifying whether humans are morally right when choosing to eat meat. This paper will argue that it is morally impermissible to eat meat by focusing on the treatment of animals, the environmental argument, animal rights, pain, morals, religion, and the law.

    Read More

  • Being a Vegetarian is Better For the Planet

    896 Words  | 2 Pages

    Albert Einstein once said, "Nothing will benefit human health and increase chances of survival for life on earth as much as the evolution to a vegetarian diet." As people move into a more health conscious society, vegetarianism is becoming a popular choice. While some people cannot imagine a day without meat, others are convinced that a vegetarian lifestyle is the better option. There are numerous benefits of being a vegetarian. Some of the reasons are as follows: vegetarianism has multiple health paybacks, is far better for the environment, and is morally sound. Most people believe that vegetarianism is unhealthy, goes against our natural diet, and unnecessary, however, a vegetarian diet offers many health benefits and is more ethical than an omnivorous existence.

    Read More

  • Pros And Cons Of Vegetarianism

    1751 Words  | 4 Pages

    Everything that we as humans decide to do has a consequence. Our agency that we are given opens up so many opportunities of lifestyles we are able to live. Many people search for the “perfect lifestyle” that has all the right answers and gives the perfect insight as to what is right and what is wrong. Although the perfect lifestyle seems great, it does not exist. There is not one single answer to everyone’s problems and life answers simply because every being on the planet is different. One way of living may be perfect for Betty Sue, but quite unsatisfactory for Jim Bob. It is very important that we make smart choices and are informed and know the facts about the lifestyles we choose to live. Being a vegetarian is a lifestyle that many people choose to live and pursue. The reasons behind choosing this style may vary person to person, but no matter what the reason is, it is important to be informed about all the pros and cons of being a vegetarian in order

    Read More

  • Vegetarian Diet Argumentative Essay

    1935 Words  | 4 Pages

    Vegetarians tend to be healthier than those who consume meat. This is due to the prevalent unnatural chemicals used in the processing of meats, and eating these are unsuitable for the body. Meats already contain harmful amounts of cholesterol, and over-consumption of red meat can lead to early heart disease. Animals that are raised on farms for their meat are not treated well, and this mistreatment can lead to harm in the meat they are producing. Although one life choice cannot change one’s environmental

    Read More

  • It is Better to be a Vegetarian

    1128 Words  | 3 Pages

    For several years the issue of eating meat has been a great concern to all types of people all over the world. In many different societies controversy has began to arise over the morality of eating meat from animals. A lot of the reasons for not eating meat have to deal with religious affiliations, personal health, animal rights, and concern about the environment. Vegetarians have a greater way of expressing meats negative effects on the human body whereas meat eaters have close to no evidence of meat eating being a positive effect on the human body. Being a vegetarian is more beneficial for human beings because of health reasons, environmental issues, and animal rights.

    Read More

  • Should we all become vegetarians?

    796 Words  | 2 Pages

    As we can now observe, vegetarianism has become something fashionable, and the number of people who reject eating meat is constantly increasing. In Britain, for instance, over 5 million people have done it so far. It is obviously connected with the recent animal diseases, but this tendency is likely to spread on the other regions of the world. However, it is not only a fashion or fear of illnesses. I myself became a vegetarian about 2 years ago, and I can see a number of reasons why people should stop eating meat. They are mainly of ethic, economic and health type. Those who think in an ecological way should also be aware of how this meat consumption ruins our environment. I don’t have an intention to force anybody to become a vegetarian, but I hope that my argumentation would be strong enough to make some people think about it, at least. In this essay I will try to present this point of view, expressing my personal feelings and showing scientific facts about the problem.

    Read More

  • Be or Not to Be a Vegetarian

    1272 Words  | 3 Pages

    In today’s fast-paced, modern and practical society people are becoming more health conscious. This includes trying to choose the best available options for a beneficial lifestyle. Exotic Greek salads, fresh fruit juices, delicate tofu preparation, smelly grilled vegetables, creamy grains soups, moisten carve soufflés, and so much more are common elections for meals for many people. They are becoming more concerned these days about the increasing health risks of a meat-based diet. On the other hand, others have taken a step further and believed that animal cruelty involved in killing animals and using them for their products is inhumane and should be outlawed. Since meat-eating has been an accepted part of the human diet across the spectrum of many civilizations for millions of years, a controversy emerges between those who want to be banned the use of animal products and those who enjoy a steak now and then. Should people consider becoming a vegan?

    Read More

More about David Curnutt Case Study

Open Document