Wild Justice: The Moral Lives of Animals

It is a long held assumption that humans alone are moral beings. Indeed, it's all too easy to assume that the gap separating humans from other animals is a "morality" gap. Yet like our biology which has evolved from and resembles that of other species, morality too develops through an evolutionary process and links us to the broader animal kingdom. In his new book Wild Justice: The Moral Lives of Animals, Marc Bekoff (and co-author Jessica Pierce) argue pointedly that animals too are moral beings. They feel empathy for each other, treat one another fairly, cooperate toward common goals, and help keep each other out of trouble. It is even reasonable to suggest that at times, animals adhere to their moral codes more strongly than we humans do ours!