Tourism, Animals and Utilitarianism

Abstract

Although tourism researchers have recently started to examine moral issues tied to the use of animals in tourism, there is much work that needs to be done. It is particularly important to introduce animal ethics theories into the tourism lexicon because of the vast number of ways the tourism industry uses animals for commercial and personal benefit. Such theories provide a basis from which to examine these uses from different vantage points. This paper employs utilitarian theory, in particular Peter Singer's views, in an attempt to more clearly understand the consequences of our use of animals in tourism. Emphasis is placed on broadly mapping the terrain of utilitarianism, identifying its central properties, examining some of the main criticisms of the theory, and exploring how utilitarian thinking can help in our consideration of the moral acceptability of certain tourism practices, especially zoos.

Keywords:

• animal ethics
• utilitarianism
• speciesism
• tourism
• zoos