Ewan Callaway “Knock out the pain genes”: The Author Appeal to A Credible Informative Article
Have you ever thought of this little cow confined in its too small enclosure, calmly waiting for its coming painful death while suffering of its poorly treated injuries? Did your bleeding beef and rump roast taste better while thinking of that? Did you ever notice of factory farm’s atrocious treatment toward animals? In his informative essay, “Knock out the pain-genes”, Ewan Callaway suggests different ways to remove pain on livestock in factory farms. However, the author stays neutral and shows as well the oppositions to these alternatives of removing pain. By suggesting alternatives as cloning and genetically engineered animals, Ewan Callaway demonstrates
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all the options, researches and objections. The author effectively conveys his purpose through his uses of examples and argumentation, process and cause and effect, and appeal to authority that give creditability and validity to his text.
Firstly, the author structures his text with argumentations and afterward, justifies these arguments with examples. Essentially, he shows the arguments in favor of the genetically engineered animal’s alternatives as well as the oppositions to these alternatives. For instance, he presents the alternative of blocking the sensation of pain in livestock and supports this argument by giving an example of mice lacking a gene, called nav1.7, which prevents the mice of feeling heat and pressure. Ewan Callaway subsequently shows an opposition to this argument which is that: “it could mean they put themselves in harm’s way”. He also supports this opposite argument with an example of 6 children who never felt …show more content…
pain and injured themselves. As another example, the author presents the option of removing a portion of the ACC in the brain. He sets those circumstances with a study exerted on rats: “a recent study showed that rats with ACC damage behaved as though they were less affected by pain”. Thereafter, the opposition is clearly established by the author and denounces the impracticability of these surgeries on an industrial scale. Finally, Ewan Callaway proposes the genetic engineered animal, which consists in an injection on a particular gene in the ACC. However, the opposition relates that companies and consumer groups had rejected these alternatives. Moreover, he points out a last alternative which is to completely removing factory farms. In a proper way, Ewan Callaway reaches his purpose to inform his public of the progress in factory farms without giving a personal opinion. The structure of argumentation gives to his text credibility and the examples and studies support his argumentation. Moreover, the author uses causes and effects as well as process to give all information needed to understand the progress of genetic in animal’s suffering. In his text, Ewan Callaway defines the problem of factory farm as an ethical problem.
The causes of the researches in genetically engineered animals are the factory farm’s lack of ethic toward animal’s suffering and treatment. He describes factory farm as: “notorious for cramped quarters and ill treatment of animals”. Furthermore, the author comes back to causes at the end of his text with factory farm’s “enormous amounts of waste and greenhouse gases and breed antibiotic resistance.” In the other hand, Ewan Callaway presents the effects of these progresses in genetically engineered animals. As example of attempt in genetic engineering, he demonstrates studies on mice and rats. Thereafter, the author uses process to explain theses scientific experiences and conclusions. For instance, an effect of progress in genetic is the possible option of removing a portion in the ACC in the brain, which affect the chronic pain. Subsequently, an experience on rats proved that ACC damage is less affected by pain. The author uses process to explain the experience, which is inevitable to understand conclusion of scientific studies’. Cause and effect are essential to understand the problem and to understand effect of progress. In short; Ewan Callaway successfully informs the public about progress in genetic engineering by presenting the cause and the effect, which he explains with the device of
process. Lastly, Ewan Callaway supports his text with an excessive use of appeal to authority. The author uses philosophers, neuroscientists and ethnologists who defend different positions toward the problem of animal’s suffering. Appeal to authority is important to give credibility to the text. By quoting the original words of these authorities, without paraphrasing or changing the words, the author demonstrates that the information he is giving are valable and that he is not changing the meaning. Especially, all the options and oppositions proposed by the author are based on the point of view of authority. In conclusion, Ewan Callaway reaches his purpose to inform his public about the progress of genetic in attempt to remove the pain on livestock in factory farms. His article is credible and valable due to his uses of argumentation, causes and effect and appeal to authority. Since our appetite raised by 50 per cent since the 1960, the consumption of meat will continue to increase further even though the emergence of developing countries will consume even more. If the consumption of meat continues to increase at that rate, should we consider the options and continue our progress toward finding a solution for mitigate the animals suffering in factory farms or should we continue to be ignorant and insensible toward bad treatment?
However, billions of animals endure intense suffering every year for precisely this end.” Norcross was referring to the animals in a factory farms that produce meat to sell in supermarkets. Norcross explains the factory farms animals live cramped and stress-filled lives. The animals also undergo mutilations without any anesthesia. In the end of the factory farms’ animal life, they’re butchered for the production of meat such as chicken, veal, beef and pork to sell for a profit in places such as a grocery store or
In Alastair Norcross’ paper, “Puppies, Pigs, and People: Eating Meat and Marginal Cases” he describes a situation in which a man, Fred, has lost his ability to enjoy the gustatory pleasure of chocolate due to a car accident. However, it is known that puppies under duress produce cocoamone, the hormone Fred needs in order to enjoy chocolate again. Since no one is in the cocoamone business, Fred sets up twenty six puppy cages, and mutilates them resulting in cocoamone production in the puppy’s brains. Each week he slaughters a dog and consumes the cocoamone. When he is caught, he explains to the judge and jury that his actions are no different from factory farming because he is torturing and killing puppies for gustatory pleasure similar to how factory farms torture and kill cows, chickens, etc. for other people’s gustatory pleasure. You, the reader are meant to think that this is unacceptable, and therefore, denounce factory farming. Although there are many valid objections to this argument, I am in agreement with Norcross and shall be supporting him in this paper. I think the two most practical objections are that (1) most consumers don’t know how the animals are treated whereas Fred clearly does, and (2) if Fred stops enjoying chocolate, no puppies will be tortured, but if a person becomes a vegetarian, no animals will be saved due to the small impact of one consumer. I shall explain the reasoning behind these objections and then present sound responses in line with Norcross’ thinking, thereby refuting the objections.
One’s behavior, health, disorder, and characteristics, all depend on he’s genetic code. Genetic engineering, also known has genetic modification, can have various methods, but commonly consists of alternating the DNA in an organism’s genome (Winter). Several instances of alternating the DNA in an organism comprises of changing one base pair of the organism’s DNA, removing a region of the DNA, and gene cloning (Winter). Scientist use genetic engineering to enhance and modify the characteristics of an organism (Knapton). For example, aside from the experimental purposes, the cross between Bison and beef combined each of their best quality to make one enhanced outcome. Due to the cross, the Beefalo has increased efficiency and taste, meaning they can input costs and improve profits. Other examples of genetic engineering include GMO (Genetically Modified Organism) foods, such as fruits and vegetables. Genetic engineering, although used on animals and food for decades, only recently surfaced with concrete evidence towards working on human DNA. This groundbreaking knowledge can provide new medical advances, completely altering the emblematic
...he reader, which creates many questions about the particular subject of genetic engineering. It also conveys the authors idea, that we really need to be careful about what we do with this new scientific marvel, effectively to the reader, thus raising the reader's awareness about genetic engineering.
Both in and out of philosophical circle, animals have traditionally been seen as significantly different from, and inferior to, humans because they lacked a certain intangible quality – reason, moral agency, or consciousness – that made them moral agents. Recently however, society has patently begun to move beyond this strong anthropocentric notion and has begun to reach for a more adequate set of moral categories for guiding, assessing and constraining our treatment of other animals. As a growing proportion of the populations in western countries adopts the general position of animal liberation, more and more philosophers are beginning to agree that sentient creatures are of a direct moral concern to humans, though the degree of this concern is still subject to much disagreement. The political, cultural and philosophical animal liberation movement demands for a fundamental transformation of humans’ present relations to all sentient animals. They reject the idea that animals are merely human resources, and instead claim that they have value and worth in themselves. Animals are used, among other things, in basic biomedical research whose purpose is to increase knowledge about the basic processes of human anatomy. The fundamental wrong with this type of research is that it allows humans to see animals as here for them, to be surgically manipulated and exploited for money. The use of animals as subjects in biomedical research brings forth two main underlying ethical issues: firstly, the imposition of avoidable suffering on creatures capable of both sensation and consciousness, and secondly the uncertainty pertaining to the notion of animal rights.
The use of genetic modification in enhancing human characteristics has brought about negative issues, such as discrimination, ethical issues and corruption. With this in mind, genetic modification has benefitted humans immensely; developing the knowledge of the human mind, preventing hereditary diseases and improving the physical attributes of individuals. Nevertheless, the disadvantages surrounding the enhancement of human characteristics through genetic means outweigh the advantages as portrayed by the film and text, “Gattaca” and “Flowers for Algernon” respectively. In conclusion, the enhancement of human characteristics through genetic means should be strictly advocated against.
The introduction to the article and the following six paragraphs are not composed of opinions or viewpoints. The general facts and methods of genetic engineering are described, and the companies behind the research are introduced. Loaded words are used in this part of the article but are not very common.
Science and technology are rapidly advancing everyday; in some ways for the better, and in some, for worse. One extremely controversial advance is genetic engineering. As this technology has high potential to do great things, I believe the power genetic engineering is growing out of control. Although society wants to see this concept used to fight disease and illness, enhance people 's lives, and make agriculture more sustainable, there needs to be a point where a line is drawn.
Genetic engineering has been around for many years and is widely used all over the planet. Many people don’t realize that genetic engineering is part of their daily lives and diet. Today, almost 70 percent of processed foods from a grocery store were genetically engineered. Genetic engineering can be in plants, foods, animals, and even humans. Although debates about genetic engineering still exist, many people have accepted due to the health benefits of gene therapy. The lack of knowledge has always tricked people because they only focused on the negative perspective of genetic engineering and not the positive perspective. In this paper, I will be talking about how Genetic engineering is connected to Brave New World, how the history of genetic engineering impacts the world, how genetic engineering works, how people opinions are influenced, how the side effects can be devastating, how the genetic engineering can be beneficial for the society and also how the ethical issues affect people’s perspective.
Shortly after the groundbreaking discovery of the structure of DNA in 1953, the scientific world was essentially given the ability to alter the genetic sequence of any living organism using a process known as 'genetic engineering'. By definition, genetic engineering is 'the deliberate modification of the characteristics of an organism by manipulating its genetic material', it is quite simply an unnatural process which defies the ordinary course of nature. As of yet, no devastating or permanent damage has been done. However, the unpredictable nature and unknown consequences genetic engineering holds is more than enough reason to be cautious, as one mistake could have irreversible and catastrophic effects.
Can you imagine going through the pain that animals in slaughterhouses went through? Most people don’t think of that part of it but the real fact is that billions of animals went through a painful life to be killed for food every year. Most people like to keep the thought in there heads that these animals live on beautiful green farms where they are treated great and then have a very peaceful death, and never feel any or little pain. Well that is not the case, these animals are treated very unfairly. The animals in slaughterhouses are given a massive amount of antibiotics, hormones, and drugs to keep them alive in conditions that are so bad they would otherwise kill them.
Peter Singer, an author and philosophy professor, “argues that because animals have nervous systems and can suffer just as much as humans can, it is wrong for humans to use animals for research, food, or clothing” (Singer 17). Do animals have any rights? Is animal experimentation ethical? These are questions many struggle with day in and day out in the ongoing battle surrounding the controversial topic of animal research and testing, known as vivisection. Throughout centuries, medical research has been conducted on animals.
Factory farms have portrayed cruelty to animals in a way that is horrific; unfortunately the public often does not see what really goes on inside these “farms.” In order to understand the conditions present in these factory farms, it must first be examined what the animals in these factory farms are eating. Some of the ingredients commonly used in feeding the animals inside factory farms include the following: animal byproducts, plastic, drugs and chemicals, excessive grains, and meat from members of the same species. (Adams, 2007) These animals are tortured and used for purely slaughter in order to be fed on. Typically large numbers of animals are kept in closed and tight confinements, having only little room to move around, if even that. These confinements can lead to suffocation and death and is not rare. Evidence fr...
The main ethical dilemma presented in the film is the use of genetic modification technology in humans. The scientists initially approach this dilemma by thinking like classic teleologians. “By incorporating human DNA into the hybrid template, we can begin to address any number of genetically influenced diseases…Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, diabetes, even some forms of cancer”. (Splice, 2009) They are producing a greater good by choosing this ethical path. This is the core motive for the current use of GMOs. According to the Human Genome Project (U.S. Department of Energy Genome Programs, 2008), GMOs have a variety of applications; To increase the yield of crops and animal products, to make plants and animals more resistant to certain disease, and more efficiently processed are but a few. The end product of these applications is, in theory, to benefit humanity. If we are already genetically modifying plants and animals, is a...
One of the most unsettling experiments that is conducted includes taking organs from one species and transplanting them into another, which is known as xenotransplantation. The practice of genetic engineering in animals destroys the life of one animal to create specific, unnatural traits in another. Research has shown that people will only agree and accept the practice of animal experimentation when they think that the animals do not experience suffering. However, if the experiments were broadcast more publicly, this issue would not exist.