Sins of the flesh: a history of ethical vegetarian thought

摘要

It is tempting to claim that with the publication of Sins of the flesh there is no need for anyone else to write a book about the history of ethical vegetarianism. That is probably overstating it (and may even cause unnecessary alarm among those currently toiling away on that very topic!). Yet it would not be an exaggeration to say that Rod Preece has done a spectacular job uncovering and synthesising a vast amount of information about vegetarianism - with a special emphasis on ethical vegetarianism - literally since humans first descended from the trees. His work takes the reader from the evolution of the human species, to Ancient Greece, though the Renaissance, the Enlightenment, the early modern period, to the twentieth century, and concludes with a discussion about vegetarianism in North America. A special chapter on North America seems a little out of place as North Americans have not made a contribution to vegetarianism that automatically distinguishes them from other Westerners. Nonetheless, when one recalls that the author is Canadian-based, the inclusion becomes less curious, and like all other chapters in the book, it is filled with fascinating insights.