RE: A Moral Quandary About Eating Meat
Very interesting. I have not read "The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy" but I keep hearing about how much philosophy it contains throughout and how many interesting ideas and quandaries it puts forward.
I think the uneasiness that Adam and Noel feel comes from being faced with the creatures "being." Typically, we are not our own butchers. We do not do the "dirty work" of killing a live being. Someone else does that for us. We simply pick up a steak at the supermarket in a process that allows us to objectify the animal and allows us to largely remain ignorant to the fact that it is actually a once living creature that we are eating. Adam and Noel could no longer objectify the meat and so experienced the sobering effect of looking the animal in the eyes knowing that it was about to die.
Just my interpretation. Nice post.
I'm interested in hearing your thoughts on the subject. How do you see this situation or how would you answer your own question?
I really like your answer. Both of the characters objectified their food. Like you said Noel was your typical persom buying meat at a supermarket and never thinking of the animal.
Adam is also guilty of this, I imagine a salad wouldnt solve his unease after this encounter. He now finds himself guilty of his original argument is it humane to eat plants, and how can we know?
I would say they have been confronted with the idea that there are no real morals. Being confronted by this cows being has awoken them to the bitter fact that life eats life and opened the door for them to question the rest of their morals.
Edit: you should definitely read the books if you get the time. Its funny but still manages to be super deep, as well as being a unique and interesting story.
Very interesting perspective. I never thought about how it could make us question all of our morals but certainly like the idea you are putting forward.
I'll have to pick up the book, sounds pretty good.