Luka Roth Animals & Society

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ESSAY 1
Throughout history, scholars have speculated as to why so many cultural taboos exist

surrounding certain animals. For example, Christian biblical narratives contain disparaging

depictions of animals such as frogs, locusts, and lice and describe them as “plagues” or

“swarms” which have negative connotations (Fan, 9/14). In addition, many believe that real life

diseases are to blame for the negative association of animals such as dogs, pigs and rats, since

many of them carry diseases like plagues or rabies and have negatively impacted humans on

multiple occasions throughout history (Fan, 9/14). In Mark Essig’s book, Lesser Beasts, he

demonstrates why pigs were appreciated and even revered in some societies while eating pork

was prohibited in others. Essig asserts that pigs were cherished due to their similarity with

humans, their versatility and low cost to raise, and because pigs were instrumental to the success

of European and Western civilization, whereas the main reason pigs were so scorned in the East

was because of religion.

The history of pigs in Eastern history differs greatly from that of western history, and the

primary reason is due to climate. Although it is possible that God simply arbitrarily chose to

prohibit Jews from eating pigs without any explanation, or that pigs were deemed impure

because they are scavengers that eat feces and the blood of other animals, Essig believes that the

negative connotation surrounding pigs began earlier than even the conception of the three main

monotheistic religions (Essig, 57-58). The Middle East, where the negative association of pigs

most likely arose, is a hot, dry, desert climate. Essig mentions that the ancient Egyptian

civilization relied heavily on crops and livestock from the entire Nile region to fuel its

construction of the Great Pyramid of Giza, since the thousands of workers had to be fed (Essig,

43). However, archaeologists studying the site at Giza found countless animal bones of cows,

mutton, and goats, yet pigs were noticeably missing. Pigs were indeed present in the region
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during this time, though none were found at Giza. Essig deduced that the reason for this is due to

climate and biology. Villages such as Kom el-Hisn throughout the Nile were expected to provide

livestock for the workers at the pyramids, where they would be transported and slaughtered at the

site. Therefore, the animals that were best suited for the journey across hundreds of miles of

desert were cattle, sheep, and goats (Essig, 44). Pigs, on the other hand, are scavengers and

omnivores, and thus would have had trouble finding food and shade along the journey. Thus, the

villagers of Kom el-Hisn primarily ate pigs, since they had little or no access to the

state-sponsored food provisions of the ancient Egyptian government, while wealthy priests and

city officials ate lamb and beef. As Essig mentions repeatedly throughout the book, pork was

eaten by commoners often because it was the only thing they had access to: it provided a

nutritious source of food that could be raised cheaply with scraps, giving food security and some

level of economic freedom to peasants (Essig, 48). This created one of the earliest instances of

classism dictating views on pigs, since over time the wealthy grew to associate pigs as a “poor

man’s” meat, ultimately spreading these views throughout the region.

As mentioned previously, the main reason pigs were viewed unfavorably in early Eastern

civilizations was because of religion. Essig himself largely attributes these views to the

pre-existing notions of pigs as dirty, scavenging, peasant animals in the region. On the other

hand, many anthropologists and religious authorities make different claims as to why the Jews

formally banned pork in their religion. Some point out the aforementioned fact that pigs are

unsuitable to desert conditions which leads them to eat the foods humans need to survive, yet this

fails to consider the fact that pigs can be kept in small quantities sustainably as scavengers along

river settlements. Others mention that pigs are not suitable for nomadic lifestyles, which is true.

However, although pastoral nomads were more common in the Middle East, many Israelites
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were sedentary, so this would not have been sufficient reasoning to ban pigs (Essig, 56). Another

reason Jews may have been influenced by their neighbors. If the biblical story of Abraham is

true, then it makes sense that the original Israelites didn’t eat pork, since Abraham allegedly

came from Mesopotamia and migrated to Egypt — two ancient civilizations who rarely kept

pigs, didn’t sacrifice pigs, viewed them as dirty and “unholy,” and associated their consumption

with lower class status (Essig, 46-51). Lastly, one of the most persuasive theories Essig proposes

is that pigs threatened the power of ancient civilizations over their people, because pigs were an

excellent way for poor people to gain control over their food source instead of relying on the

government (Essig, 56). All of these factors may have contributed to the early Israelites

codifying their prohibition of pork. Nevertheless, practically all scholars agree that pork’s

prohibition had nothing to do with trichinosis, since many other animals also carry diseases when

eaten, and ancient humans would likely have been unable to establish a connection between

eating rotten pork and getting sick ten days later (Essig, 56).

Conversely, there is a plethora of evidence supporting the reasons why pigs came to be so

respected and even desired in other societies. One theory is that pigs are more similar to humans

than any other domesticated animal. Pigs, like humans, are omnivores, and can survive on

extremely diverse diets (Essig, 7). This added to their appeal to many early humans, since they

could scavenge for their own food even in times of famine and eat the scraps, garbage, and

excrement of humans (Essig, 7). In fact, when early European explorers ventured into unknown

islands, they would leave a few pigs so that they could return to a bountiful supply of food with

little to no effort or interference. This is because pigs are exceptionally quick at reproducing,

with a gestation period less than half as long as that of cows, yet producing as many as ten times

as much offspring per litter, all of whom mature for slaughter far quicker than calfs or lamb
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(Essig, 8). Furthermore, besides food, pigs held a unique purpose in history, even in societies that

condemned them: waste management. Sewer systems didn’t exist in early human settlements, so

most people defecated in public. This became an issue as populations transitioned away from

nomadism and towards a sedentary way of life (Essig, 49). Pigs played an important role because

they helped clean up the squalid cities and essentially served as garbage disposal, street cleanup,

and toilets all at the same time. Pigs have been found in archaeological sites from China to

Egypt, and are still seen today, lingering close to human waste (Essig, 49). However, the same

role that made them useful to humans also contributed to their being seen as disgusting creatures.

The ancient Greek and Roman ascensions to power marked a drastic change in the

favorability and prominence of pigs. The Greeks succeeded the Persians, yet unlike the Persian

Empire, their forcefully imposed Greek culture upon their people (Essig, 60). Whereas before

Jews primarily avoided pork to maintain religious purity, they now abstained from pork in order

to differentiate themselves from the people they lived amongst (Essig, 55). Essig mentions

numerous occasions when Greek rulers punished Jews who refused to give up their traditions by

forcing them to eat pork. Later, once the Romans had conquered the Greeks, they were more

tolerable towards the Jewish rejection of pork, yet continued to torment them. As opposed to

Jews, the Greeks and Romans viewed pigs as lavish, miraculous, and symbols of abundance

(Essig, 66). Pigs were the most common sacrificial animal chosen by the ancient Greeks and

Romans, and were constantly killed when sealing agreements, and celebrating events (Essig, 67).

Pigs were seen as pure, and even became symbols of fertility. Moreover, pigs were the luxurious

meat of choice for the Romans, favoring them to goat and beef and creating countless recipes for

cooking pork in different ways such as the De re coquinaria (Essig, 69). Emperor Augustus even

added pork to his citizens’ bread rations, driving the Romans to create one of the most extensive
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and advanced systems of agriculture the world had seen. Not only did the free meat placate

Rome’s subjects and increase their trust and allegiance to the government, but it also spurred

Roman innovation and allowed them to conquer and spread their influence across Europe,

Africa, and Asia. For example, Rome developed some of human civilization’s first aqueducts and

plumbing systems, causing pigs to feed off of nuts and grains instead of the garbage and human

waste they were known to consume (Essig, 75). This not only caused them to taste better, but

also contributed greatly to Westerners viewing pigs in a more favorable light and less as nasty

scavengers (Essig, 66). Overall, pigs were instrumental in Rome’s ability to control its

population, advance technologically, and later spread Christianity throughout Europe (Essig, 64).

After the fall of Rome, pigs largely kept their status throughout Medieval Europe (Essig,

82). Europeans embraced pigs because they were trying to emulate the traditions, ideas, and

success of the Romans (Essig, 82). However, the pig also began to adopt new positive

connotations during this time. For example, pigs and boars came to be seen as “warrior animals”

in Europe, since they are strong, robust, and fearless creatures who charge at their enemies and

thus symbolize ferocity (Fan, 9/16). This played into the warrior culture that persisted during this

era as well, and killing a boar was even believed to transfer the strength and bravery of the

animal to the hunter (Essig, 84). Later, when Europeans conquered the New World, they used

pigs as a main source of nourishing their slaves (Essig, 2). Unlike cows, pigs were perfectly

adapted to the Americas, so they were the livestock of choice. In conclusion, it is clear that Essig

viewed pigs as not only significant but also necessary to the success of Western civilization.

They were accepted in the West for their usefulness and versatility, yet shunned in the East due

to their perception as dirty scavengers, which then likely informed religious principles of Islam

and Juduaism.
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ESSAY 2
Animals and humans have lived alongside one another since the dawn of civilization. In

fact, even prior to the first societies and history, animals such as dogs and pigs essentially

domesticated themselves— following humans as they traveled from place to place subsisting on

their food scraps and even hunting alongside them. However, humanity’s close relationship with

animals has also brought some unforeseen consequences. For example, animals have the capacity

to transmit diseases to humans, so I disagree with Dodo’s statement, and firmly believe that we

as humans should worry about getting sick from animals.

Although there are numerous food taboos surrounding different animals regarding their

purity, cleanliness, or social status, some of these views are substantiated by evidence (Fan,

9/12). Many animals are vermin to humans, since they harm our crops, livestock, and even

people. In fact, even some livestock can damage humans, such is the case with pigs transmitting

swine flu to humans (Fan, 9/14). Another example of animals causing real life diseases in

humans is with rabies. Rabies was rampant during the nineteenth century, and although it mainly

affected dogs and killed only a few hundred per year, it terrified Europeans at the time (Ritvo,

168). Plus, humans infected with rabies had to endure immense anxiety, pain, and eventually

death (Ritvo, 169). Finally, a more widespread and famous instance of zoonotic disease came in

the form of the Black Death (Fan, 9/14). The plague ravaged the entire continent of Europe and

killed millions, changing the landscape of Europe for centuries to come (Fan, 9/14). It was

spread by fleas who likely infested the rats that traveled with the Mongols on their trade routes

and military conquests (Fan, 9/14).

In summary, we as humans should be weary and mindful of animals because their

diseases have negatively affected us throughout history. Even animals that appear to be benign or
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friendly can have devastating consequences, such as dogs with rabies. Thus, getting sick from

animals is a legitimate concern because it has happened continuously throughout human history.

MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTIONS

1) Aristotle’s system of classification of animals included the following major principle:

a. with or without red blood
b. with or without a tail
c. with or without a nice haircut

2) In medieval Europe, what animal was often likened to a king?

a. the lion
b. the hedgehog
c. the donkey