Neo-republicanism as a framework for a political theory of animal protection - An evaluation of Philip Pettit’s neo-republican theory of freedom and its potential for extending justice to non-human animals

Abstract: Non-human animals are often excluded from contemporary political theories, much to their detriment in terms of welfare and protection. The ‘political turn’ is a subset of animal ethicists concerned with moving beyond motivating moral status and instead discussing the politics of a shared human-animal society. This thesis evaluates Philip Pettit’s neo-republicanism as a theoretical framework for a political theory of animal protection. Focusing on whether or not neo-republican theory is able to extend its conception of justice to non-human animals, this thesis consists of a qualitative text analysis of Pettit’s writings on non-human animals and assesses his principles in accordance with reflective equilibrium strategy. After taking Pettit’s theory at face value as well as modifying it with the addition of empowered proxy agents able to represent the interests of non-human animals, this thesis shows that neo-republicanism is more often than not incompatible with our considered judgments. The results suggest that in order to accommodate justice for non-human animals, Pettit would have to alter or abandon major parts of his theory. Finally, this thesis offers thought for further research and points future inquiries into the relationship between political theory and non-human animals towards alternate ideals of animal protection.