Apes and Cetaceans are persons. Whales in particular, have a very interesting case that supports this. This of course, is their ability to pass down certain information from generation to generation as songs. This seems rather absent in most of the animals kingdom. Although songs seem rather irrelevant, it is the principle that matters here, as it is indicative of individual value, and a long-term effect of any individual's whale's life.
With Apes, I don't feel like the case is as strong, but their ability to tell emotionally laden stories through sign-language is certainly indicative of something very important. I once saw a video of a gorilla tell a story of her mother being captured and killed by poachers, which was very heartbreaking. It seems that this gorilla has memory of this event outside of conditioning, and still experiences an emotional effect as a result- certainly an area that requires more research.
No comments:
Post a Comment