Jonathan Safran Foer Eating Animals Analysis

Alienation from Nature
The alienation of nature describes a dissociation between nonhumans and nature caused by humans. Jonathan Safran Foer, a recently converted vegetarian, described in his book “Eating Animals” the horrific consequences of factory farming and the divide between humans and nature. The customers, butchers, and factory farmers have three very disparate disconnections with the animals slaughtered. Factory farm owners replace these naturally occurring organisms with selected mutants. The farmers breed the animals with desirable traits for many generations compiling and enhancing these traits. “Some traits matter more to the producer, like the ever-important rate of feed conversion; some matter more to the consumer, like how lean

Dale Jamieson, an environmental studies and philosophy professor, argues that these establishments are supposed to amuse, educate, preserve species, as well as provide opportunities for research. Rarely are these objectives accomplished. Firstly, “providing amusement for people is viewed by the general public as a very important function of zoos, (though) it is hard to see how providing such amusement could possibly justify keeping wild animals in captivity” (Jamieson, 168). Liberty is stolen from animals captured for zoos, they can no longer gather food, form social orders, nor live a normal life for their species. Actually very few captured will live at all, for example “the rule of thumb among trappers is that ten chimpanzees die for every one that is delivered alive to the United States or Europe” (Jamieson, 174). How can zoos be preserving species if the mortality rates are so high? The few that do survive to reproduction are often used as vehicles for their genes and no longer respected as individuals. Inbreeding is a massive problem because such poor breeding and health records are kept. Furthermore “it is hard to believe that zoos are serious about their role in preserving endangered species when all too often they do not even take this minimal step” (Jamieson, 174). Education in zoos is also kept at a minimum. Stephen Kellert reported that “zoo-goers are much less knowledgeable about animals than backpackers, hunters, fishermen, and others who claim an interest in animals at all, and are only slightly more knowledgeable than those who claim no interest in animals at all” (Jamieson, 169). Scientific research is supported by zoos in three ways, funding, hiring scientists as staff, and making rarer animals more available for study. However, these ideals are seldom effectuated because “nothing can be learned by studying animals that are kept in these unnatural conditions,” few scientific