Pro Hunting Research Paper Animal Rights

Pro Hunting Research Paper

Animal Rights

Shane Wiseman Shawnee Felts Matthew Bragg

Since man first stood upright he has been hunting. In fact, it is commonly accepted among paleoanthropologists that hunting prey was the reason that man first stood up in the first place. Our ancestors needed the extra protein to help feed our developing brains, and at that time we had not figured out how to extract protein from plants so readily (Kaplan). As hunter- gatherers, everyone’s ancestors probably ate only naturally growing fruits, various wild rice, and lots of meat from the hunt. From that time forward, mankind has been hunting.

The hunt has ingrained itself as a part almost every culture around the world. It started with Native American tribes, some of whom had elaborate rituals before and after hunts whether or not they were successful. The Aborigines of Australia maintain their traditional ways of hunting with spears and boomerangs today (Welch). African medicine-men have in centuries past, and even today, perform rituals to predict the outcome of an elephant hunt before the hunt is authorized. Immediately after the kill, these shamans perform more rituals on the carcass to placate the spirit of the beast, lest it become vengeful. Even ancient man drew on his cave walls scenes depicting individuals involved in hunting and the animals that were pursued.

Some may argue that just because we have done a thing in the past does not mean we should continue doing it now or in the future. In the case of hunting, it is true that in today’s modern America and most industrialized countries, people do not need to hunt, kill, and process their own meat in order to survive. All anyone needs to do today is to drive to Wal-Mart or Kroger, and they can have almost any cut of meat from a variety of animals. As a result, almost nobody thinks about where their food comes from. In fact, most people forget that those neatly wrapped, almost sterile, pieces of flesh are animal parts....