Agora

Philosophy

Ecology

Biology

Computer science

Human animal

Commons

Animal ethics

Genetics

Political philosophy

Environmental ethics

Politics

Political science

Epistemology

Sociology

Representation (politics)

Programming language

Animal rights

Domestication

Social Theory and Practice

Many theorists of the ‘political turn’ in animal rights theory emphasize the need for animals’ interests to be considered in political decision-making processes, but deny that this requires self-representation and participation by animals themselves. I argue that participation by domesticated animals in co-authoring our shared world is indeed required, and explore two ways to proceed: 1) by enabling animal voice within the existing geography of human-animal roles and relationships; and 2) by freeing animals into a revitalized public commons (‘animal agora’) where citizens encounter one another in spontaneous, unpredictable encounters in spaces that they can re-shape together.

Animal Agora