In Defense of Dolphins: The New Moral Frontier (Blackwell Public Philosophy Series) [Paperback]

Thomas White (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 1405157798 | ISBN-13: 978-1405157797 | Publication Date: July 31, 2007 | Edition: 1

Have humans been sharing the planet with other intelligent life for millions of years without realizing it? In Defense of Dolphins combines accessible science and philosophy, surveying the latest research on dolphin intelligence and social behavior, to advocate for their ethical treatment.

• Encourages a reassessment of the human-dolphin relationship, arguing for an end to the inhuman treatment of dolphins
• Written by an expert philosopher with almost twenty-years of experience studying dolphins
• Combines up-to-date research supporting the sophisticated cognitive and emotional capacities of dolphins with entertaining first-hand accounts
• Looks at the serious questions of intelligent life, ethical treatment, and moral obligation
• Engaging and thought-provoking

Editorial Reviews

Review

"An interesting read which raises some important issues regarding the way we view other species … [A] thought-provoking book." (Animal Welfare, May 2008)

“White is a distinguished, well-published philosopher…His book is clearly written, carefully reasoned, and easily read. Summing Up: Highly recommended.” (Choice)

"Thought-provoking … very readable and well laid out … (White) raises some important issues regarding the way we view other species." (Universities Federation for Animal Welfare)

Review

"Tom White's book is a superb intellectual achievement. It combines mastery of the scientific evidence together with acute ethical analysis. It is a seminal contribution to the literature on animal ethics."
–Andrew Linzey, Director of the Oxford Centre for Animal Ethics

"Thomas White does the research and brings the evidence for psychological complexity in dolphins to his readers in a compelling manner. Amidst the ongoing worldwide exploitation of dolphins in drive hunts and captivity he challenges all of us to rethink how we treat these beings. This wonderful and important book could not have come at a better time."
–Lori Marino, Emory University 

"In Defense of Dolphins is a much needed look at the current status of ethics and treatment of dolphins in a variety of conditions. Dr. White reviews current research to argue that we should reanalyze and reconsider some of the treatment issues around dolphins and human activity. As research and education strives to improve our world and our treatment of the inhabitants in it, so does this extensive exploration of the issues around another intelligent species."
–Denise Herzing, Wild Dolphin Project

"‘Alien intelligence’ or ‘nonhuman person’, or...? You will never think about dolphins the same way after reading this insightful and thought-provoking new book."
–Jerry R. Schubel, President and CEO, Aquarium of the Pacific

"In Defense of Dolphins is the most important book ever written about these animals.
This is a book that has been crying out to be produced, but one that could only be properly written now. Professor White has carefully, indeed painstakingly, taken the latest scientific research and used it to address the key questions that make the case for dolphinkind to be given 'moral standing' or 'rights'. His case is compelling and the book is both fascinating as an exercise in the systematic distillation of information, as well as its status as the key document that makes a case for the better treatment of dolphins. It is also highly readable and rich with remarkable insights into dolphin intelligence and behaviour."
–Mark Simmonds, International Director of Science, WDCS, the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 248 pages
• Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell; 1 edition (July 31, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1405157798
• ISBN-13: 978-1405157797
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.3 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #682,710 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Dr. White reveals dolphins in a whole new light., January 17, 2008

By 

Erin R. McMichael "undergraduate Psychology s... (Los Angeles, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: In Defense of Dolphins: The New Moral Frontier (Blackwell Public Philosophy Series) (Paperback)

Having always had a passion for the understanding and well-being of dolphins and marine mammals, it was without hesitation that I picked up Dr. White's book, __In Defense of Dolphins: The New Moral Frontier__. The title alone piqued my interest, as it suggested content taking a different approach into the realm of dolphin research: should dolphins be considered as persons?

His book reflects his findings from many accredited scientists, philosophers and teachers, as well as his own invaluable first-hand experiences with these majestic "non-human animals." Not only is the book's content full of data, but there are several heart-warming stories that even as an avid dolphin lover, I never knew! Who knew that a dolphin could tell if a human female was pregnant? I didn't!

I highly suggest reading this book, as it is an eye-opener to understanding that we share this world with everyone and everything. Just because something or someone seems different, does not discount that they are equally (if not more) intelligent than another species. Human beings generally hold an anthropocentric outlook, and Dr. White's arguments are so very convincing, you will be left wondering if perhaps the dolphins are "smiling" because they know something we don't!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Dolphin as a non-human person, October 1, 2008

By 

Atsushi Yoshida (Charlottesville, VA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: In Defense of Dolphins: The New Moral Frontier (Blackwell Public Philosophy Series) (Paperback)

This is an exciting book from the start, filled with anecdotes and scientific researches (from physiological to behavioral study) suggesting that dolphins have a highly intelligent, but a different kind of mind from that of the human. The author considers the dolphin as "non-human person" and its mind as "alien intelligence" that need to be understood in light of the difference between the two species' evolutionary and environmental circumstances. Unfortunately, the final chapter on ethics, where the author appears to put the focus of the book (as the title of the book suggests), fails to enlighten in comparison to the rest of the book.

In the final chapter, the author explores the ethical issues of human-dolphin relation. He attempts to develop an ethic that extends to dolphins, considering the inherent difference between the human and dolphin intelligence, namely that dolphins are not an inferior species to mankind. He appears to propose that the ethic was thus far developed from the human point of view, and that with this new understanding of dolphins, we need to develop the ethic that could be equally agreed upon from the dolphins' point of view. I think in this aspect the author's arguments fail to be convincing. For, who is the author anyway? Is he a human or a dolphin? He is most certainly a human, with his human intelligence and human ethics. No matter how hard he tries to come up with an impartial inter-species ethic, his ethic is colored by his own intelligence and ethical principles; it is necessarily anthropocentric. As a matter of fact, the author's ethical view in treating dolphins is decisively that of human. (For example, he compares captive dolphins to human slaves.) Ironically, the discussion of the entire book preceding this chapter - that dolphin intelligence is different from that of human - suggests that dolphins may not agree on such ethics on human term, no matter how benevolent (in human way) they may be. Until the day we finally manage to talk with the dolphins (assuming we could understand them if dolphins could speak!) and learn their ethics from themselves, we have to rely solely on our own moral codes in order to interact with dolphins ethically. To settle the ethical questions between dolphins and humans in an equal term, we also need the defense of dolphins made by dolphins themselves, or so I, as a human, think.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A must!, November 26, 2010

By 

Andrea Peiser - See all my reviews

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This review is from: In Defense of Dolphins: The New Moral Frontier (Blackwell Public Philosophy Series) (Paperback)

A book that makes you think in a very challenging way. It is among the top of my "must read" list along with Jane Goodall "through a window".
Highly reccomended.