Is Hunting Ethical?--Ch. 7

This essay is quite valid for our area. There are so many surrounding woods and hunting areas, that it’s important to have an opinion on hunting. Before I read this, I just thought hunting was gross and wasn’t my thing. I didn’t really think about whether it was right or wrong. To me, it was a lot like raising cows to slaughter them. But Causey really went to the core of the issue.

First off, I really liked her introduction. Explaining that it was her job to save the lives of deer, but then she turns around and is roasting venison for a dinner party. It’s almost hypocritical. However, she explains her views well and that it the question of whether hunting is right or wrong cannot be explained with a nod or shake of the head.

I really appreciated how she went to the attitude of the hunter, rather than the base concept, because any action can be morally wrong if the attitude isn’t right. For instance, if you donate $100 to church just for personal attention, it is then made wrong. But if someone asked you if it was right to donate to a church, you probably wouldn’t say no.

Although she sometimes came across as a tree-hugger, Causey explained that hunters need to have a certain respect for the creatures they’re shooting rather than just the feeling of manliness of taking a life.

I also agree with what Causey said about moral learning. That two “moral” people can be given a situation to think about the ethics behind it and they can come up with completely different conclusions. She says that morals are on a more individual level, rather than a broad generalization. I love that this can really be applied to many, many other situations.

Writing Strategies
1. Do you consider Causey’s opening narrative (¶1-7) to be effective? Explain how her opening is or is not a strength of her essay.
Like I said above, I think her opening connected her with both nonhunters and hunters. Nonhunters because she was trying to save the life of a deer and with hunters because she was eating venison for dinner. It also perks the interest of her readers because it is so confounding. It made the reader start to think and want to know what the author was really trying to get across.

Exploring Ideas
2. What points do you find most interesting and why? Which of Causey’s ideas make you think differently?
My favorite point in the essay was “We must act ethically, and we must think ethically.” This is such a vague, but significant proverb for any situation. As for actual points about the actual topic, I like how she compared the different ideas about “Reverence for Life.” She used the example of the “gutpile addicts” and also of what hunters can do ethically to convince antihunters.