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Book Reviews
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The Pig Who Sang to the Moon:
The Emotional World of Farm Animals
by Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson
(Ballantine Books, New York)
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In this book, Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson, retired psychoanalyst and author of When Elephants Weep, turns his attention to a class of animals that many of us take for granted. Many Americans eat bacon and eggs, drink milk, and wear wool sweaters, but relatively few of us, in these modern times, have been personally acquainted with the creatures that supply us with these commodities. As Masson himself points out, “Many people now go through life without seeing a hen in any other form than a corpse.” And yet, those people who do become closely acquainted with a hen, (or pig, or cow) and get to know her as an individual, often find these animals to have as much personality, emotional complexity, and capacity for affection as any dog, cat, or parrot.
The reader is introduced to Piglet, a sow who enjoys violin music on moonlit nights, to the Chicken, a hen who delights in teasing the cat, to Rammo, a ram who befriends a blind heifer and acts as her guide, and to a number of other fascinating and engaging animals. There is also a good deal of interesting information about the natural habits and behavior of the beasts that we raise for food and fiber.
As might be expected, however, the natural behavior and emotional needs of farm animals are often given short shrift, particularly in the intensive, modern factory farms that increasingly dominate the agricultural landscape. In these factories, chickens, pigs, and cattle are often treated more like machinery than sentient beings, and the living conditions can be grim. A brood sow, for example, can spend most of her life in a stall too small to turn around in, with only cold concrete for a bed. Laying hens are often crammed into tiny cages, in “a controlled environment in which sun, wind, rain, bugs, worms, sprouts and growing things” have no place. Not a pretty picture.
This, however, brings up those vexing old questions: Are the animals really unhappy under these conditions? Can we really say what makes an animal happy? Masson devotes an entire chapter to discussing these questions, and has this to say: “I think we can know quite easily. An animal is happy if he or she can live in conformity with his or her own nature, using to the maximum those natural traits in a natural setting. To live according to nature will differ for each species, but the answers are not unfathomable mysteries.” If we apply this rule, it can be assumed that the sow who cannot dig in the earth, the hen who cannot sunbathe, and the calf penned in solitary confinement are not happy animals.
What can be done to better the lot of farm animals? For Jeffrey Masson, the answer was to become a complete vegetarian, a process that he admits is still ongoing. He rejects the idea of “humanely raised” meat, saying “It just makes no sense to me that we would want to care for animals in a compassionate manner, live with them and get to know them as individuals, then turn around and simply kill them for our food. Every time I think about that, I get dizzy. It just seems profoundly wrong, as profoundly wrong as anything I know.” However, he also says “I used to sneer at the thought that somebody had decided to give up meat once a week. Now I think it’s fine. It’s a beginning.” Personally, I would think that a farmer who wants to raise his animals more humanely could be regarded in the same spirit.
This is a book that is sure to spark discussion and debate. Many readers will, no doubt, wish to argue with Masson’s opinions on the nature of happiness, and some might question whether the whole world can really adopt a vegan lifestyle. Still, I think it is fair to say that, even if you don’t agree with all of Mr. Masson’s conclusions, his book is sure to give you plenty of food for thought.
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