Annotated Bibliography

Bruckner, Donald W. "Considerations on the Morality of Meat Consumption: Hunted-Game versus Farm-Raised Animals." Journal of Social Philosophy 38.2 (Spring 2007): 311-330.

The article written by Bruckner titled “Considerations on the Morality of Meat Consumption: Hunted-Game versus Farm-Raised Animals” provides an in-depth look at the difference between hunting for meat and buying slaughtered meat that was raised on a farm. The welfare of the animal while being hunted versus being raised on a farm is discussed. Game management from the animal’s aspect and the human aspect is explored including the economic impact. The moral depravity of the hunter and his ethics are also discussed.

I focused on the portion of the article that discussed the moral aspects of hunting and how that compares to buying meat off the shelf at your local supermarket. The entire article had information that will be useful in my paper. I particularly liked the section that discussed the “real world” hunting and the different types of hunters that are out there. It helps to realize that not all hunters have the same ethical and moral responsibility that the authentic hunter has.

CIC Wildlife.org. 2007. CIC-International Council for Game and Wildlife Conservation. 10 July 2007 .

The CIC Wildlife website is promoting the efforts of the International Council for Game and Wildlife. The site has many articles about conservation and hunting with statements on what they do and who they are. You can access the history of the organization and the projects currently underway. There is a section with press releases and publications related to the organization and conservation. A list of links to access other related websites is also available.

The site provided me with a couple of articles that discuss the reasons why we hunt. One in particular explicitly addresses the question of “Why hunt?” This is the key to my paper and will be argued from both sides of the issue. I felt this site had much of the information I was looking for in regards to answering the question and developing my paper.

Conservation Force.org. 2007. Conservation Force. 10 July 2007 .

The Conservation Force website is promoting the efforts of the Conservation Force organization. The site has many articles and publications about conservation and hunting. A gallery of pictures is provided showing staff members and various events. A list of projects with their locations and descriptions is available along with links to other related sites.

I focused mainly on a section of the site called “Why we Hunt”. There are several articles discussing the various reasons for why an individual hunts. Some statistics are available categorizing the motivations for hunting. I liked the various articles about why we hunt and they were relevant to my paper. The list of links on this site is exhaustive and will probably supply me with more information.

Dunayer, Joan. Animal Equality: Language and Liberation. Derwood, Maryland: Ryce Publishing.

In “Animal Equality: Language and Liberation”, the author is offering her perspective on the rights of animals. She points out the deceptions created by using biased words to justify the lack of respect for non-human animals. Using evidence of non-human thought and emotion she shows us that they also are reasonable and sensitive. Examples of language used to legitimize hunting, fishing and other animal abuse are given to prove her point.

My focus while researching this book was Chapter 4, “Victims Mistaken for Game”. I felt this provided me with an alternative perspective on hunting. She discusses the cruelty of wounding and killing animals. The unfairness of humans hunting with advanced technology is explored. She offers her view on wildlife management being a front to give humans more to hunt. I feel her views were valid in some cases but taking them to the extreme shed an unfair light on the majority of hunters and their ethics.

Evans, J. Claude. With Respect for Nature. Stare University of New York Press.

The focus of “With Respect of Nature” is the natural involvement of humans in the ecosystems of the world. He discusses the way a human can respect the lives of the individual plants and animals we must kill while maintaining our own lives. Evans goes on to explore the human participation in the natural life and death cycles and its effect on moral.

My focus while researching this book was Chapter 7, “Toward a Philosophy of the Hunt”. This chapter addresses several key issues when discussing the reasons why we hunt and our moral responsibility to respect nature. The emotions during a hunt are explored and the feeling of “losing yourself” in the act.

Gunn, Alastair S. "Environmental Ethics and Trophy Hunting." Ethics & the Environment 6.1 (Spring 2001): 68.

The article written by Gunn titled “Environmental Ethics and Trophy Hunting” covers many aspects of hunting. He briefly discusses the wildlife management aspect and views against it. Animal killing and suffering are explored and he talks about target species for “Trophy Hunting”. The effect hunting has on the biodiversity and ecosystems, the economics of hunting, and the human needs for hunting are explained.

I focused mostly on the views of trophy hunting and the human needs sections. The trophy hunting is an alternative form of hunting that I do not agree with and should provide me with an argument for the authentic hunter. I will also use the human needs portion to help justify my view on why we hunt. The article was geared towards hunting in Africa but still had valid points for my paper.

IWMC.org. 2007. IWMC World Conservation Trust. 10 July 2007 .

The IWMC website is promoting the efforts of the IWMC World Conservation Trust organization. The site provides information on the projects currently being explored along with articles related to the conservation efforts. The site has sections related to specific animals with related articles and press releases discussing the issues. There is a bookstore, media center and forum accessible on this site.

I focused on an article titled “Why Hunting is Good Medicine for Youth, Society and the Environment”. The article refers often to the instinctual need for man to hunt and the effect hunting has on the psychological welfare of humans. The article had some good points about the naturalness of hunting and the compassion and empathy that hunting and killing an animal brings out in young people. I believe this article will help me articulate some of the points I will be discussing in my paper.

Kellert, Stephen R., and Timothy J. Farnham. The Good in Nature and Humanity. Washington: Island Press.

“The Good in Nature and Humanity” is comprised of several sections discussing different perspectives on science, religion and spirituality and their effect on our relationship with nature. The perspectives are told from various standpoints from resource managers and land users to religious and spiritual considerations.

My focus while researching this book was Chapter 13, “Hunting and Spirituality: An Oxymoron?” This chapter specifically discussed the oneness a hunter feels with nature while hunting. The author has a very good description of why we hunt.

Peterson, M. Nils. "An Approach for Demonstrating the Social Legitimacy of Hunting." Wildlife Society Bulletin 32.2 (Summer 2004): 310-321.

The article written by Peterson titled “An Approach for Demonstrating the Social Legitimacy of Hunting” is about the ethics and classification of hunters and the legitimacy of hunting. He discusses the naturalness of hunting and the prey predator relationship and the right of animals to be on lands whether it is public or private. He explores the concepts of animal rights and the various views on the shared values between the hunters and animal rights activists. A categorization of different types of hunters is graphically explained in detail.

I found the article to be very helpful in viewing both sides of the argument and he gave some statistics to help make his points. Many of the graphical representations of his concepts helped explain what he was trying to say. Some of the moral dilemmas that are often in dispute are addressed including the trophy hunters versus the authentic hunters.