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An Igbo Cultural Defence of Anti-Speciesism

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An Igbo Cultural Defence of Anti-Speciesism AN IGBO CULTURAL DEFENCE OF ANTI-SPECIESISM By Iheanacho Chukwuemeka METUONU B.A. Philosophy (IMSU), M.A. Philosophy (Ibadan) Matric. No: 119438 A Thesis in the Department of Philosophy, submitted to the Faculty of Arts in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY of University Of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria MARCH 2014 DEDICATION i To I dedicate this thesis to the glory of the Almighty God, the creator and maker of all things; including the human and nonhuman animals: And To all who extend their love and care towards the nonhuman animals. ii CERTIFICATION I certify that this research, titled ―An Igbo Cultural Defence of Anti-speciesism‖ was carried out by Mr. Iheanacho Chukwuemeka Metuonu in the Department of Philosophy, Faculty of Arts, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria. ………………………………………………….. SUPERVISOR CHRISTOPHER O. AGULANNA B.A., M.A. (Lagos); MAE (Linkoping University, Sweden); M. A. (Utrecht University, Netherlands); PhD (Ibadan) Professor of Ethics and Social Philosophy iii ABSTRACT Anti-speciesism, as opposed to speciesism, is the view that non-human animals are sentient beings and so should be granted moral status; a position shared by the Igbo culture which accords moral considerability to a good number of non-human animals. Existing studies on animal ethics have addressed these issues mainly from Western socio-cultural perspectives without significant contribution from the African cultural ambient that could provide complementary insights toward the debate. This study, therefore, interrogated the speciesist and the anti-speciesist positions, using cultural elements from the Igbo thought system with a view to evolving a complementary framework that will corroborate the position of anti-speciesism from the African context. The study adopted Peter Singer‘s theory of sentientism and Nwala‘s theory of animism as framework. While sentientism emphasises the ability of a being to experience pleasure or pain, animism grants souls to non-human animals as criteria for moral considerability. Ten core texts on the philosophy of animal ethics which included Singer‘s Animal Liberation and six on Igbo culture such as Nwala‘s Igbo Philosophy, Ilogu‘s Igbo Life and Thought and Onunwa‘s Anthology on Igbo Myths were purposively selected. The critical method was employed to examine the positions of speciesism and anti-speciesism and to analyse cultural concepts such as ube-ariri (animal emotion) and ugwu anu (animal integrity), drawn from the Igbo thought system while the conceptual analysis helped in explaining relevant notions such as sentientism, painism, moral status and equality. Texts on animal ethics revealed two contending traditions in the animal rights debate – speciesism and anti-speciesism. Works by Singer, particularly, Animal Liberation revealed that speciesism assigns moral status to humans on grounds of rationality, self-consciousness and the ability to communicate through verbal language. Anti-speciesism holds that non-human animals are subjects-of-a-life just like humans, and so have inherent worth in themselves. However, these extreme positions have not accommodated other cultural views due to their strong western orientation. Texts on Igbo culture revealed the Igbo belief about non-human animals living in a community of their own; possessing such basic rights as freedom, autonomy and independence – ideas that are expressed in some Igbo proverbials, myths and aphorisms, which, for instance, forbid a hunter from killing or disturbing a pregnant or mating animal. Furthermore, the principle of egbule (do no harm) towards such animals as the duck, sheep or millipede, imply moral considerability. There exist culturally relevant facts from Igbo thought such as ube-ariri (animal emotion) and ugwu anu (animal integrity), captured in the Igbo philosophy of egbe bere, ugo bere (live and let live), which grants mutual tolerance and fair treatment to all beings, justifying the claim of anti-speciesism that non-human animals are worthy of moral consideration. The Igbo culture grants moral privileges to a good number of non-human animals, thereby promoting the mutual flourishing of all beings. Therefore, the Igbo philosophy of egbe bere, ugo bere (live and let live) which accords moral consideration to non-human animals, provides a complementary framework that justifies the position of anti-speciesism. Key words: Speciesism, Anti-speciesism, Sentientism, Moral status, Igbo thought. Word count: 489 iv ACKNOWLEDGMENTS My mouth is full of praises to the Almighty God, the King of kings, and the Lord of all lords, for His unfailing love and care towards me. I thank Him for His immense and bountiful blessings as well as unfathomable grace which enabled me to undertake this PhD programme and to pursue it to a logical conclusion. May His name alone be hallowed and praised throughout all eternity. Amen. My profound gratitude goes to my indefatigable supervisor, Prof. Christopher Otito Agulanna for his love, commitment and unalloyed interest in the work and in my academic progression as a whole. I appreciate the depth of his inputs, his constructive criticisms, support and guidance. The zeal, passion and enthusiasm he showed towards the successful completion of the work were matchless and consummate. Sir, I deeply appreciate your efforts and pray that the good Lord will richly bless and remember you for good in all that you do. I thank in an immeasurable manner, my parents, Rev. Canon Jeremiah Omenihi Metuonu and Mrs. Mabel Ogbonie Metuonu who I value so much both as parents and as pro-creators with the great God who made the heaven and the earth. My intellectually perspicacious parents were the ones who first introduced me to this critical genre of reasoning called philosophy. From the very first day of my creative vitality and I became endued as a living being, they have always been there for me; nurturing and guiding me to becoming who I am today. Daddy and Mummy, I am using this medium to tell you and the whole of humanity that I love and appreciate you so dearly. May the Lord continually be with you and bless you, in Jesus‘ name. Amen. I deeply appreciate the invaluable contributions of my teachers and lecturers in the Department of Philosophy, University of Ibadan such as Profs. Oyeshile, Dipo Irele and Ekanola, Drs. Ukpokolo, Offor, Udefi, Lanre-Abass, Afolayan and Adegbindin. These were worthy academic mentors to me. I am also thankful to Dr. C. L. Ochulor of the University of Calabar who introduced me Prof. U. R. Onunwa, who on his part granted me unfettered access to his rich library. The discussions I had with Prof. Onunwa helped to deepen my knowledge about Igbo cosmogony or theory of the universe. I am equally appreciative of the contributions and encouragements of Rev. Fr. I. M. Onyeocha of Imo State University and Dr. Edet Mesembe of the University of Calabar. I thank v my colleague and friend in the United States of America, Mr. Victor Nnadi who assisted me with original texts by Peter Singer, Tom Regan and Richard Ryder, the architects and leading lights of the animal rights movement in the intellectual world of today. Their works have challenged to give more than a passing concern to the interests of the nonhuman animals. I cannot forget the support I received from my colleagues and students in the Department of Philosophy, Joseph Ayo Babalola University. May the good Lord bless them richly as well. My immense gratitude goes to siblings and their families who have remained pillars of support and encouragement to me in all my life‘s pursuits. Their constant intercessions and knockings at the doors of heaven lent a hand in throwing heaven‘s door open and helped in the successful completion of this work. Finally, I cannot but appreciate my loving wife and angel, Vivian; she is my precious jewel of inestimable value and God‘s exceptional gift to me. Through the thick and thin as well as the ups and downs of this academic pursuit, my wife has remained unflinching in her support, patience and endurance. Her prayers and soothing words have been the healing balm for my intellectual soul. To our loving little boys, Marvellous and Manuel who God has used to bless our lives, I extend my gratitude as well. To all others who are too numerous to mention but who have supported me in one way or the other, I am deeply appreciate to you all. And to all lovers of the nonhuman animals, I say, ―keep the fires of love burning.‖ Thank you all and God bless, amen. Iheanacho Chukwuemeka METUONU March 2014 vi TABLE OF CONTENTS TITLE PAGE ………………………………………………………………………………….....i DEDICATION …………………………………………………………………………...........iii CERTIFICATION ………………………………………………………………….…………. iv ABSTRACT ……………………………………………………………………………..………v ACKNOWLEDGMENTS …………………………………………………………...........vi - vii TABLE OF CONTENTS …………………………………………………………….……viii - x INTRODUCTION ……………………………………………………………….............. 1 CHAPTER ONE: THE ANIMAL RIGHTS DEBATE 1.0 Introduction 5 1.1 Animal Rights – A Historical Discourse 5 1.1.1 The Ancient Period 5 1.1.2 The Medieval Period 6 1.1.3 The Renaissance and Modern Eras 8 1.1.4 The Contemporary Period 11 1.2 Conclusion 15 Endnotes 16 CHAPTER TWO: THE QUESTION OF MORAL RIGHTS AND INTRINSIC VALUE 2.0 Introduction 19 2.1 The Concept of Moral Rights 20 2.1.1 Human Rights 25 2.1.2 On the Question of Animal Rights 40 2.2 The Moral Significance of Animals‘ Moral Claims/Rights 60 2.2.1 The Utilitarian Argument (Peter Singer) 61 2.2.2 Alternative Perspectives of Human Relations to Nonhuman Animals 65 2.3 The
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