Justice for All?: The Shortcomings and Potentials of the Capabilities Approach for Protecting Animals

Authors

Jennifer Davidson

First Page

425

Abstract

In her book, Frontiers of Justice, Martha Nussbaum sets out to build upon, and re-envision, John Rawls’ theory of justice. Her goal is to establish a conception of justice that extends to three classes that are not adequately captured in Rawls’ work: people with disabilities, people living in different countries, and nonhuman animals. This Note takes on the last of those three extensions, nonhuman animals. Part I presents a brief overview of the major scholarly approaches to conceptualizing animal rights. Part II lays out the capabilities approach in detail, focusing particularly on its application to nonhuman animals. Part III analyzes the areas in which Nussbaum creates inconsistencies that weaken both her theory’s capacity to extend justice to animals and its overall logical soundness. Finally, Part IV presents two key entitlements, the right not to be used solely for human benefit and the right not be used for profit, that create a stronger, more comprehensive approach to including animals within a framework of justice.

Recommended Citation

Jennifer Davidson, Justice for All?: The Shortcomings and Potentials of the Capabilities Approach for Protecting Animals, 24 Animal L. Rev. 425 (2018).
Available at: https://lawcommons.lclark.edu/alr/vol24/iss2/6