Course Reflection

All of the research and readings that we did this semester pertaining to animal ethics really opened my eyes to the issues at hand. I never knew that any of these actions occurred, or cared to even think about these issues. Besides the viewing of the video Earthlings, Jonathan Safran Foer's Eating Animals was probably the most informative reading, to me, of the course. As Foer states, "What the industry figured out is that you don't need healthy animals to make a profit. Sick animals are more profitable"(111). The fact that the farming industry is feeding us sick, hormone injected, gene mutilated animals is very disturbing. In our readings in The Animal Ethics Reader, I have also learned many things. In Dale Jamieson's essay, "Against Zoos", he states, "In order to avoid the 'surplus' problem, some zoos have considered proposales to 'recycle' excess animals: a euphemism for killing them and feeding their bodies to other zoo animals"(510). This is something that I never would have researched, or even thought about, if it weren't for this class and the readings. Overall, all that we have done in this course has change my thoughts and eating habits regarding animals.

The skills that I have acquired from this class just keep adding up. I find myself being more confident when first diving into a paper now compared to before. Also, I have learned to not just state what I believe, but to "nod to the opponent" and then refute that argument. I have also gotten better at putting texts in conversation, as well as organizing my papers. I can now take with me all of these needed skills as I continue through my college years.