0:00:00.190,0:00:04.450
The Renaissance was a time of rediscovery,[br]rebirth, and renewed interest in classical

0:00:04.450,0:00:08.760
Greek philosophy. Viewed as the bridge[br]between the Middle Ages and modern times,

0:00:08.760,0:00:12.660
the Renaissance spurred innovation[br]and revolution within the fields of art,

0:00:12.660,0:00:16.519
architecture, politics, science,[br]astronomy, literature, and more.

0:00:16.519,0:00:20.930
With the invention of moveable type,[br]ideas spread faster than ever before,

0:00:20.930,0:00:24.990
and there began a general shift[br]away from the religion-centric thought

0:00:24.990,0:00:28.560
of the Middle Ages towards[br]an individual-centric humanistic thought,

0:00:28.560,0:00:31.290
valuing logic and reason at its core.

0:00:31.290,0:00:36.519
With all of this paradigm-shifting[br]afoot, one must wonder: “Where were the

0:00:36.519,0:00:45.249
vegans?” Okay, maybe one mustn’t wonder[br]that necessarily…but today we’re going to!

0:00:49.760,0:00:53.439
Hi, it’s Emily from Bite Size Vegan and[br]welcome to another vegan nugget.

0:00:53.439,0:00:57.579
In “The History of Veganism, Part One” [br]we covered veganism in ancient times,

0:00:57.579,0:00:59.960
and in “Part Two” we tackled[br]the Middle Ages.

0:00:59.960,0:01:03.440
If you missed them, both of those[br]installments are linked in the sidebar

0:01:03.440,0:01:05.240
and in the description below.

0:01:05.240,0:01:08.840
In “Part Three” we’ll be delving[br]into the time of the Renaissance.

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Now, as always,[br]I need to start with a few caveats.

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First, the actual start and end dates[br]of the Renaissance,

0:01:14.850,0:01:18.320
like all time periods, are still debated.[br]For the sake of this video,

0:01:18.320,0:01:23.870
we’ll be focusing on around 1500 to 1700[br]CE, as “Part Four” will cover the Age

0:01:23.870,0:01:25.040
of Enlightenment.

0:01:25.040,0:01:28.360
Second, as with “The Middle Ages,” “The[br]Renaissance” applies

0:01:28.360,0:01:32.590
almost exclusively to Europe,[br]with the term “The Early Modern Period"

0:01:32.590,0:01:35.680
more appropriately capturing[br]the time period on a global scale.

0:01:35.680,0:01:39.430
I’ve chosen the title:[br]“The Renaissance” for ease or recognition.

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Third, due to the nature[br]of the information I was able to find,

0:01:42.710,0:01:46.950
and as always, historical bias,[br]this is a rather Euro-centric video.

0:01:46.950,0:01:50.750
Though there were most undoubtedly[br]worthy developments within other parts

0:01:50.750,0:01:53.980
of the world, as we’ve already seen[br]in the first two parts.

0:01:53.980,0:01:57.000
But there is some good news! [br]While still profoundly

0:01:57.000,0:02:00.610
male-centric as well,[br]we do finally get documentation

0:02:00.610,0:02:03.660
of an influential woman,[br]with many more to come

0:02:03.660,0:02:08.130
as historians slowly begin to actually[br]take their most assuredly long-present

0:02:08.130,0:02:10.670
contributions into account.

0:02:10.670,0:02:13.100
Fourth, as we’re now getting closer[br]to modern times,

0:02:13.100,0:02:15.870
and as I said in the introduction,[br]the 15th century saw

0:02:15.870,0:02:19.460
the invention of moveable type,[br]the amount of recorded information

0:02:19.460,0:02:21.849
increases dramatically from here on out.

0:02:21.849,0:02:25.239
Thus, the disclaimer I’ve given[br]in each history installment is

0:02:25.239,0:02:29.250
ever more valid with each video;[br]I will most certainly leave out

0:02:29.250,0:02:33.240
key individuals and occurrences[br](as all historical accounts are bound to).

0:02:33.240,0:02:37.650
Again, this is not intentional,[br]but a sad fact of my human limitations

0:02:37.650,0:02:40.270
in attempting to research, write, edit[br]and publish what amounts

0:02:40.270,0:02:44.340
to a ten-page academic research paper,[br]and produce several full-length

0:02:44.340,0:02:48.800
YouTube television episodes[br]all within 2-4 days, every week.

0:02:48.970,0:02:50.890
♪ Sad violin playing ♪

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In order to create as comprehensive[br]of an historical video series

0:02:54.819,0:02:59.199
and I can and to account for valuable[br]information that, for sake of time,

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cannot fit within[br]the core overarching timeline,

0:03:01.380,0:03:06.120
moving forward I will be producing[br]“History of Veganism Spotlight” videos

0:03:06.120,0:03:09.450
on specific movements,[br]cultures and individuals.

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Some examples will be a feminist history[br]of veganism, veganism in war times,

0:03:14.020,0:03:18.490
a deeper look into the traditional diet[br]of Native Americans prior to colonization,

0:03:18.490,0:03:22.760
“The History of Vivisection,” and more.[br]All of these will be housed

0:03:22.760,0:03:25.110
in "The History of Veganism Playlist.”

0:03:25.180,0:03:29.660
Fifth, and in a similar vein,[br]if I or anyone finds errors in this video

0:03:29.660,0:03:33.730
(or any of my videos in fact)[br]I will keep a log on the blog post,

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which is also where you can go to find all[br]of my sources for everything I state today

0:03:37.950,0:03:41.040
as well as both full-length[br]and additional quotes.

0:03:41.140,0:03:46.070
And finally, sixth, as the term “vegan”[br]wasn’t coined until 1944,

0:03:46.070,0:03:50.810
historically the word “vegetarian”[br]most often meant what we now call “vegan.”

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With all of that out of the way[br]--I thought it would never end

0:03:54.349,0:03:55.930
onwards to:

0:03:55.930,0:03:59.410
“The History of Veganism!”

0:04:00.140,0:04:01.350
[Part Three]

0:04:01.410,0:04:04.580
The Renaissance saw a shift[br]towards valuing the individual

0:04:04.580,0:04:07.030
and questioning religious beliefs[br]and practices.

0:04:07.030,0:04:10.850
Thus, in this video we will be focusing[br]on selected writings and beliefs

0:04:10.850,0:04:14.810
of individual historical figures,[br]rather than overarching religions,

0:04:14.810,0:04:16.449
philosophies or cultures.

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Some historians assert that there was[br]no development of veganism,

0:04:19.530,0:04:23.540
at least from an ethical standpoint,[br]between Porphyry of 3rd century CE

0:04:23.540,0:04:26.669
who we covered in Part One,[br]and the turn of the 18th century,

0:04:26.669,0:04:29.520
leaving the Middle Ages[br]and the Renaissance in a black hole

0:04:29.520,0:04:30.740
of un-veganness.

0:04:30.980,0:04:35.050
However, as we saw in “Part Two,”[br]individuals like the Medieval blind

0:04:35.050,0:04:39.440
Arab philosopher, poet, writer[br]and all around vegan-truth-bomb-dropper

0:04:39.440,0:04:42.390
of the Islamic Golden age,[br]Abul ʿAla Al-Maʿarri,

0:04:42.390,0:04:44.900
were passionately vocal[br]about the rights of animals.

0:04:44.900,0:04:48.880
While the humanism of the Renaissance and[br]rebirth of scientific inquiry

0:04:48.880,0:04:52.280
led to assertions of human superiority[br]and a resurgence

0:04:52.280,0:04:55.570
and proliferation[br]of barbaric vivisection practices,

0:04:55.570,0:05:00.100
it also saw a growing counter movement[br]that viewed animals as intelligent,

0:05:00.100,0:05:03.230
sentient, and worthy[br]of compassion and respect.

0:05:03.230,0:05:06.710
As Professor Rod Preece states[br]in his text, Sins of the Flesh,

0:05:06.710,0:05:09.140
in reference to humanistic individuality:

0:05:09.140,0:05:13.390
“To recognize individual humans[br]as ends in themselves is a prerequisite

0:05:13.390,0:05:17.430
to recognizing individual animals as ends[br]in themselves. It is only when we can look

0:05:17.430,0:05:21.490
to ourselves and say ‘I’ that we can look[br]to animals and acknowledge their right to

0:05:21.490,0:05:26.500
be perceived, if not necessarily conceive[br]of themselves, as an ‘I’ too.”

0:05:26.500,0:05:30.039
While many, if not most of[br]the individuals we will cover today,

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either weren’t themselves fully[br]vegan/vegetarian or there’s

0:05:32.719,0:05:36.560
not sufficient documentation[br]to know one way or another,

0:05:36.560,0:05:39.780
each has contributed,[br]through their writings, to the development

0:05:39.780,0:05:41.830
of vegan principles and ideals.

0:05:41.830,0:05:45.470
Let’s start with the quintessential[br]Renaissance man: Leonardo da Vinci,

0:05:45.470,0:05:48.930
who Professor Rod Preece posits was[br]“the first of the modern

0:05:48.930,0:05:52.850
ethical vegetarians, basing his thoughts[br]solely in the ethical realm”

0:05:52.850,0:05:56.200
and “the first since Porphyry[br]to fuse animal ethics

0:05:56.200,0:05:58.360
and principled vegetarianism.”

0:05:58.615,0:06:02.455
And again Abul ʿAla Al-Maʿarri[br]gets the short end of the stick.

0:06:02.620,0:06:05.500
Best known for his achievement[br]in the art world, da Vinci

0:06:05.500,0:06:09.480
made significant contributions to[br]architecture, botany, engineering,

0:06:09.480,0:06:13.409
mathematics, music, history,[br]cartography, geology, invention,

0:06:13.409,0:06:17.700
and more--including animal rights[br]and ethical vegetarianism,

0:06:17.700,0:06:21.060
though not as frequently[br]listed in historical accounts.

0:06:21.060,0:06:25.539
While da Vinci himself never seems to have[br]stated explicitly that he was vegetarian,

0:06:25.539,0:06:30.070
those who knew him and wrote about him[br]described da Vinci as both caring for

0:06:30.070,0:06:32.019
and not consuming animals.

0:06:32.019,0:06:36.040
Da Vinci did, however, write very[br]powerfully against the entitled nature

0:06:36.040,0:06:39.140
of humans in their treatment of animals[br]for their own gain:

0:06:39.140,0:06:42.890
"King of the animals–– as thou hast[br]described him–– I should rather say

0:06:42.890,0:06:46.110
king of the beasts, thou being [br]the greatest––because thou doest only

0:06:46.110,0:06:48.870
help them, in order that they give thee[br]their children for the benefit

0:06:48.870,0:06:51.749
of the gullet, [br]of which thou hast attempted to

0:06:51.749,0:06:56.979
make a sepulcher [grave/tomb] for all[br]animals; and I would say still more,

0:06:56.979,0:06:59.220
if I were allowed[br]to speak the entire truth.”

0:06:59.220,0:07:04.009
And in a similar vein, “Man has great[br]power of speech, but the greater part

0:07:04.009,0:07:06.650
thereof is empty and deceitful.[br]The animals have little,

0:07:06.650,0:07:10.920
but that little is useful and true;[br]and better is a small and certain thing

0:07:10.920,0:07:12.119
than a great falsehood.”

0:07:12.119,0:07:14.849
Da Vinci asks those insistent[br]on eating animals,

0:07:14.849,0:07:18.819
“Does not nature produce enough simple[br][meaning: vegetarian] food

0:07:18.819,0:07:23.390
for thee to satisfy thyself?”[br]This is a question we will see echoed many

0:07:23.390,0:07:26.280
times by other veg-inclined thinkers[br]of this time.

0:07:26.280,0:07:30.079
In a rather unique display of overarching[br]vegan ethics for this time period,

0:07:30.079,0:07:35.330
da Vinci speaks to issues beyond diet:[br]naming leather for the animal skin that it is;

0:07:35.330,0:07:39.400
denouncing the destruction of bees for[br]beeswax and theft of their food

0:07:39.400,0:07:42.500
for honey; decrying the loss[br]of generations of fish;

0:07:42.500,0:07:46.090
defending animals abused for labor[br]and eventually slaughtered;

0:07:46.090,0:07:49.990
highlighting the thievery and “barbaric”[br]slaughter of “countless numbers” of “their

0:07:49.990,0:07:54.170
little children”; and even addressing the[br]perversity of using a knife with a ram’s

0:07:54.170,0:07:56.820
horn handle to slaughter more[br]of their own kind.

0:07:56.820,0:07:59.190
As a note,[br]if you’re visually impaired,

0:07:59.190,0:08:03.299
this particular da Vinci quote[br]I’m referring onscreen is on the blog post

0:08:03.299,0:08:05.800
for text-to-speech or screen-readers.

0:08:05.800,0:08:08.760
Demonstrating once again that[br]the arguments against veganism

0:08:08.760,0:08:11.860
haven’t changed over the centuries[br]is an excerpt from da Vinci

0:08:11.860,0:08:15.199
explaining why it is that plants[br]do not feel as animals do.

0:08:15.199,0:08:20.330
Yes, we have perhaps one of the greatest[br]minds of human history reduced to refuting

0:08:20.330,0:08:24.979
the poignant counterpoint, “Plants, tho.”

0:08:25.329,0:08:28.730
As a quick aside, there is a quote[br]frequently circulated amongst vegan

0:08:28.730,0:08:31.960
and vegetarians that[br]is falsely attributed to da Vinci,

0:08:31.960,0:08:34.470
namely,[br]“I have from an early age abjured the use

0:08:34.470,0:08:37.999
of meat, and the time will come when men[br]such as I will look upon

0:08:37.999,0:08:40.789
the murder of animals as they now look[br]upon the murder of men.”

0:08:40.789,0:08:43.250
This was accidentally misattributed to him

0:08:43.250,0:08:47.690
in anthology and actually comes[br]from a fictional portrayal of da Vinci.

0:08:47.690,0:08:53.260
I’ll close our coverage of da Vinci with[br]an account from Giorgio Vasari in 1550,

0:08:53.260,0:08:57.050
which speaks to da Vinci’s compassion[br]and perhaps even establishes him

0:08:57.050,0:08:58.620
as a liberator of animals.

0:08:58.620,0:09:02.070
“In all the other animals… he managed[br]with the greatest love and patience;

0:09:02.070,0:09:06.310
and this he showed when often passing[br]by the places where birds were sold, for,

0:09:06.310,0:09:08.510
taking them with his own hand out of their cages

0:09:08.510,0:09:11.700
and having paid for them what was asked,[br]he let them fly away into the air,

0:09:11.700,0:09:13.840
restoring them to their lost liberty.”

0:09:13.840,0:09:17.230
Many vegetarians of the Renaissance were,[br]like those of the Middle Ages,

0:09:17.230,0:09:18.690
ascetically-motivated.

0:09:18.690,0:09:22.450
However, unlike their Medieval[br]predecessors, Renaissance ascetics were,

0:09:22.450,0:09:26.000
by and large, more individualized[br]and secular in their pursuits,

0:09:26.000,0:09:30.760
with health and longevity, rather than religious purification, being major motivators.

0:09:30.760,0:09:33.770
Among them existed several[br]medical doctors interested

0:09:33.770,0:09:37.910
in reforming the practice of medicine[br]by aiding the body in healing itself

0:09:37.910,0:09:40.190
through proper diet and lifestyle choices.

0:09:40.190,0:09:43.670
Perhaps the first of the modern rational[br]and secular ascetic vegetarians

0:09:43.670,0:09:46.500
was Venitian Luigi Cornaro (1465-1566)[br]whose writing,

0:09:46.500,0:09:49.740
A Treatise on a Sober Life influenced[br]a great number of individuals

0:09:49.740,0:09:52.490
including Leonardi Lessio (1554-1623)[br]and Dr. Thomas Moffet.

0:09:52.490,0:09:57.580
Moffet for one was not purely motivated by[br]health alone, asking in his text Health’s

0:09:57.580,0:10:01.300
Improvement, “Can civil and human eyes yet[br]abide the slaughter

0:10:01.300,0:10:05.090
of an innocent ‘beast,’ the cutting of[br]his throat, the smashing him on the head,

0:10:05.090,0:10:08.790
the flaying off his skin, the quartering[br]and dismembering of his joints,

0:10:08.790,0:10:11.990
the sprinkling of his blood,[br]the ripping up of his veins,

0:10:11.990,0:10:16.479
the enduring of ill savours,[br]the heaving of heavy sighs, sobs,

0:10:16.479,0:10:19.539
and groans, the passionate struggling[br]and panting for life,

0:10:19.539,0:10:22.400
which only hard-hearted butchers[br]can endure to see?”

0:10:22.400,0:10:26.330
and echoes da Vinci’s query,[br]"Is not the earth sufficient to give

0:10:26.330,0:10:31.070
us meat, but that we must also rend up[br]the bowels of beasts, birds, and fishes?"

0:10:31.070,0:10:34.040
It’s important to note how Moffet,[br]and indeed others of his time,

0:10:34.040,0:10:38.010
began employing the term “meat”[br]to apply to more than animal flesh,

0:10:38.010,0:10:41.330
perhaps to indicate the substantial nature[br]of plant foods.

0:10:41.330,0:10:45.830
He also employs quotations[br]around the term “beast,” which Rod Preece

0:10:45.830,0:10:50.220
asserts, “indicates both that the term was[br]becoming primarily one of abuse

0:10:50.220,0:10:53.669
and that some were less than satisfied[br]by the prejudicial usage.”

0:10:53.669,0:10:58.750
Thus “linguistic forms as well as animal[br]ethics were changing” and “it was becoming

0:10:58.750,0:11:03.199
less acceptable to malign the animals[br]by seemingly pejorative expressions.”

0:11:03.199,0:11:06.209
Other ascetic-minded meat-decriers[br]included: Philip Stubbes,

0:11:06.209,0:11:10.020
who in his text Anatomy of Abuses[br]compared the multitude of maladies

0:11:10.020,0:11:13.720
befallen those who consumed flesh[br]to the health of those who did not;

0:11:13.720,0:11:16.510
Roger Crab, whose vegetarianism[br]was grounded in Christianity;

0:11:16.510,0:11:19.800
and Dr. George Cheyne,[br]one of the most esteemed

0:11:19.800,0:11:23.379
of English physicians,[br]and one of the first medical authorities

0:11:23.379,0:11:27.830
in this country who expressly wrote[br]in advocacy of the reformed diet.

0:11:27.830,0:11:30.300
Cheyne himself battled with obesity[br]and ill health,

0:11:30.300,0:11:33.160
which he overcame[br]by eliminating meat from his diet.

0:11:33.160,0:11:35.200
Even though his primary motivation[br]was health,

0:11:35.200,0:11:39.340
Cheyne’s writing belied[br]elements of an ethical bent as well,

0:11:39.340,0:11:42.800
“At what time animal food came first[br]in use is not certainly known.

0:11:42.800,0:11:46.450
He was a bold man who made the first[br]experiment. To see the convulsions,

0:11:46.450,0:11:49.210
agonies and tortures[br]of a poor fellow-creature,

0:11:49.210,0:11:51.589
whom they cannot restore[br]nor recompense,

0:11:51.589,0:11:55.060
dying to gratify luxury[br]and tickle callous and rank organs,

0:11:55.060,0:11:58.560
must require a rocky heart, and a great[br]degree of cruelty and ferocity.

0:11:58.560,0:12:01.910
I cannot find any great difference[br]between feeding on human flesh

0:12:01.910,0:12:06.000
and feeding on [other] animal flesh,[br]except custom and practice.”

0:12:06.000,0:12:08.879
Strangely enough, within this vein[br]of pursuing health through diet

0:12:08.879,0:12:11.789
was none other than[br]Sir Francis Bacon.

0:12:11.789,0:12:16.370
--YouTube “bacon” commenters,[br]this is your moment of glory.--

0:12:16.370,0:12:19.809
While not consistently practicing[br]vegetarianism himself,

0:12:19.809,0:12:22.590
Bacon commended such a way of eating [br]and was interested in finding

0:12:22.590,0:12:27.550
the ideal diet based on empirical fact[br]rather than religious dietary taboos.

0:12:27.550,0:12:30.880
While some of his writings so hint towards[br]an ethical bent, such as:

0:12:30.880,0:12:35.040
“Nature has endowed man with a noble[br]and excellent principle of compassion,

0:12:35.040,0:12:38.210
which extends itself also[br]to the dumb animals…

0:12:38.210,0:12:42.450
And it is certain that the noblest souls[br]are the most extensively compassionate,”

0:12:42.450,0:12:45.890
he was also a firm supporter of vivisection.

0:12:45.890,0:12:49.180
Bacon’s follower, Thomas Bushell,[br]took Bacon’s vegetarian support

0:12:49.180,0:12:52.630
into full practice, driven by the desire[br]for redemptive purification.

0:12:52.630,0:12:56.330
Bushell, like Bacon, had to be cautious[br]with his vegetable fervor;

0:12:56.330,0:13:00.450
in Protestant England, asceticism was still[br]seen as a vestige of Catholicism.

0:13:00.450,0:13:03.680
While Bushell was motivated by[br]a religious drive to reverse

0:13:03.680,0:13:07.020
the acts of Adam by returning to the vegan[br]diet of man before the fall,

0:13:07.020,0:13:10.460
a belief summarized by Sir John Pettus’[br]assertion that

0:13:10.460,0:13:14.730
“We multiply Adam’s transgression by[br]our continued eating of other creatures,

0:13:14.730,0:13:18.010
which were not then allowed to us,”[br]his efforts were also

0:13:18.010,0:13:21.120
“endorsed by scientific rigour.”[br]He was putting himself forth

0:13:21.120,0:13:25.230
as the “perfect experiment” of Bacon’s[br]belief that a vegetarian diet

0:13:25.230,0:13:29.579
would extend one’s lifespan.[br]Bushell lived to age 80 at a time

0:13:29.579,0:13:33.260
when the life expectancy at birth[br]was 35 years old.

0:13:33.260,0:13:36.300
Now, as I mentioned, the information[br]available for this time period

0:13:36.300,0:13:40.099
is very Euro-centric,[br]but let’s take a moment to venture over to

0:13:40.099,0:13:44.399
North America where the European colonization[br]of the continent was well underway.

0:13:44.399,0:13:47.680
This is an area I’ll be exploring[br]more thoroughly in a dedicated video,

0:13:47.680,0:13:49.950
but I wanted to at least[br]touch on it here.

0:13:49.950,0:13:53.660
In her article “Native Americans[br]and Vegetarianism,” Dr. Rita Laws,

0:13:53.660,0:13:57.430
herself a member of the Choctaw Nation,[br]explains that the stereotype

0:13:57.430,0:14:01.470
of the horse-mounted Indian hunter[br]dressed head to toe in animal skins,

0:14:01.470,0:14:04.680
adorned with feathers and housed[br]in an animal skin teepee,

0:14:04.680,0:14:08.546
did not fit the majority of Native Americans,[br]save perhaps the Apache tribe,

0:14:08.546,0:14:10.732
prior to European colonization.

0:14:10.732,0:14:14.899
Laws writes, “Among my own people…[br]vegetables are the traditional diet mainstay.

0:14:14.899,0:14:18.829
The homes were constructed not of skins,[br]but of wood, mud, bark and cane.

0:14:18.829,0:14:21.749
The ancient Choctaws were,[br]first and foremost, farmers.

0:14:21.749,0:14:23.830
Even the clothing was plant based.”

0:14:23.830,0:14:26.449
Laws pinpoints the change[br]in practices to the appearance

0:14:26.449,0:14:29.109
of Francisco Vázquez de Coronado y Luján,

0:14:30.009,0:14:31.989
--I did my best--

0:14:31.989,0:14:34.149
better known as Coronado,[br]a Spanish explorer

0:14:34.149,0:14:36.929
who led an expedition from Mexico[br]to what is today Kansas

0:14:36.929,0:14:41.560
from 1540 to 1542, bringing with him[br]an ample amount of horses,

0:14:41.560,0:14:45.930
some of whom broke free and multiplied,[br]later to be utilized by the Plain Indians.

0:14:45.930,0:14:49.930
In combination with the later introduction[br]of guns, the Age of Buffalo began

0:14:49.930,0:14:53.630
as plain Indians learned to hunt faster[br]and more efficiently.

0:14:53.630,0:14:57.850
As an aside and perhaps preview to[br]the dedicated Native American History video,

0:14:57.850,0:15:02.150
Dr. Margaret Robinson, a vegan Mi’kmaq[br]scholar and bisexual activist

0:15:02.150,0:15:06.350
based in Toronto who’s written[br]on the creation of Aboriginal veganism,

0:15:06.350,0:15:08.990
speaks to the problematic manner[br]in which non-native people

0:15:08.990,0:15:11.980
use the history of Native tribes[br]as justification

0:15:11.980,0:15:13.880
for their own consumption of animals.

0:15:13.880,0:15:18.630
Robinson emphasizes that native culture[br]is ever-evolving, despite the tendency of

0:15:18.630,0:15:21.479
the dominant white discourse[br]to want to freeze it in time.

0:15:21.479,0:15:23.819
Of course, not all Europeans[br]were in support of hunting.

0:15:23.819,0:15:27.220
In fact, anti-hunting literature[br]was common during the Renaissance.

0:15:27.220,0:15:31.149
Dutch humanist, Catholic priest,[br]social critic, teacher, and theologian

0:15:31.149,0:15:35.700
Desiderius Erasmus produced perhaps[br]the most amusingly poignant quote of all time

0:15:35.700,0:15:38.080
made all the better considering[br]he was a priest.

0:15:38.080,0:15:42.590
Speaking of “those who prefer before[br]everything else the chase of wild beasts

0:15:42.590,0:15:46.340
[and who] say they get indescribable delight[br]from the blast of hunting horns

0:15:46.340,0:15:50.399
and the howling of hound”[br]Erasmus says, “I expect such people think

0:15:50.399,0:15:52.950
even dog turds smell of cinnamon.”

0:15:53.250,0:15:55.060
[moment of appreciation]

0:15:55.060,0:15:57.000
Let’s continue.

0:15:57.000,0:16:00.589
“But what pleasure is there in slaughtering[br]animals in whatever numbers?...

0:16:00.589,0:16:03.919
And so when they have finished[br]dissecting and devouring the dead beast,

0:16:03.919,0:16:06.970
what have they accomplished except[br]to degrade themselves into beasts

0:16:06.970,0:16:09.670
while imagining[br]they are living the life of kings.”

0:16:09.670,0:16:12.750
In his work entitled “The Boar,”[br]poet George Granville speaks

0:16:12.750,0:16:15.220
from the perspective of a wild boar[br]about to be killed,

0:16:15.220,0:16:18.630
who is pointing to[br]the human hunter’s hypocrisy, stating:

0:16:18.630,0:16:23.649
“You murder us in sport, then dish us up[br]For drunken feasts, a relish for the cup.

0:16:23.649,0:16:26.180
We lengthen not our meals:[br]but you much feast;

0:16:26.180,0:16:29.300
Gorge till your bellies burst[br]- pray, who's the beast?

0:16:29.300,0:16:31.270
With your humanity you keep a fuss,

0:16:31.270,0:16:34.720
But are in truth [br]worse brutes than all of us.”

0:16:34.720,0:16:37.560
This ability to empathize[br]with non-human animals was displayed

0:16:37.560,0:16:41.010
in many Renaissance writings[br]and was a welcome contrast to the view

0:16:41.010,0:16:43.980
of animals as machines championed[br]by René Descartes.

0:16:43.980,0:16:47.519
Though Descartes never explicitly[br]stated that animals couldn’t feel pain,

0:16:47.519,0:16:51.860
his description of them and their reactions[br]as “machine-like” provided scientists

0:16:51.860,0:16:54.769
a way to justify their gruesome[br]animal experiments.

0:16:54.769,0:16:58.319
Given that anesthesia was not available,[br]all tests were carried out

0:16:58.319,0:17:01.980
on living, fully conscious animals.[br]And before you react in disgusted

0:17:01.980,0:17:07.939
disbelief, this barbarism is still practiced[br]today in animal testing labs around the world.

0:17:07.939,0:17:09.779
More on that here.

0:17:09.779,0:17:13.969
William Harvey was the first doctor[br]since 2nd century Greek physician Galen

0:17:13.969,0:17:17.799
to begin a research program based[br]on live animal experimentation.

0:17:17.799,0:17:21.679
Through cutting open conscious rabbits[br]and tying off their hearts before slicing

0:17:21.679,0:17:25.729
through their aorta, Harvey deduced[br]that the blood circulated through the body.

0:17:26.449,0:17:27.589
Well done.

0:17:28.329,0:17:31.849
Flemish anatomist Vesalius,[br]believed by some to be the founder

0:17:31.849,0:17:36.289
of modern anatomy, established vivisection[br]as part of school curricula

0:17:36.289,0:17:39.759
and was able to disprove many of Galen’s[br]concepts by using both

0:17:39.759,0:17:43.349
live animal experimentation[br]and dissecting the corpses of criminals

0:17:43.349,0:17:45.890
or those he acquired via grave-robbing.

0:17:45.890,0:17:49.220
Against such horrors as[br]the live evisceration of animals,

0:17:49.220,0:17:52.180
the thoughtful and empathetic writings[br]of other Renaissance thinkers

0:17:52.180,0:17:54.150
are quite welcome.

0:17:54.150,0:17:55.109
Shakespeare himself expressed compassion[br]for hunted animals, trapped birds,

0:17:55.109,0:18:00.299
overworked horses, and even beetles,[br]flies and snails in various works.

0:18:00.299,0:18:05.210
For example, in “Measure for Measure,”[br]he afforded equal validity to a beetle's

0:18:05.210,0:18:09.759
experience of pain, stating,[br]“the poor beetle what

0:18:09.759,0:18:15.100
we tread upon, In corporal sufferance finds[br]a pang as great, As when a giant dies.”

0:18:15.100,0:18:19.379
Renaissance thinkers touched on a wide array[br]of issues pertinent to the development of

0:18:19.379,0:18:24.119
veganism, including, as we’ve already seen,[br]the hypocrisy and utter presumptiveness of

0:18:24.119,0:18:29.119
man, the value inherent in non-human animals,[br]the fact that humans are not designed to hunt

0:18:29.119,0:18:33.450
and consume animals, and the abundance of[br]plant foods for the taking.

0:18:33.450,0:18:38.619
Every argument against veganism that exists[br]today has apparently existed since the genesis

0:18:38.619,0:18:43.850
of veganism. We’ve already seen the advent[br]of the “Lions, tho” argument over 1,000

0:18:43.850,0:18:49.609
years ago, fielded by Abul ʿAla Al-Maʿarri,[br]and of course the “Plant, tho” taken on

0:18:49.609,0:18:54.190
by da Vinci. So I thought we’d round off[br]the latter portion of this video by hearing

0:18:54.190,0:18:58.850
some select Renaissance quotes that speak[br]to common objections as well as open up new

0:18:58.850,0:19:01.789
ways of thinking about non-human animals.

0:19:01.789,0:19:05.139
Philosopher Michel Eyquem de Montaigne (1533-1592)[br]wrote, “For my part I have never been able

0:19:05.139,0:19:09.700
to see, without displeasure, an innocent and[br]defenseless animal, from whom we receive no

0:19:09.700,0:19:13.669
offense or harm, pursued and slaughtered.”[br]He cautioned parents who would think that

0:19:13.669,0:19:18.549
their child displaying violence towards animals[br]was a sign of strength, stating that in fact

0:19:18.549,0:19:23.340
such actions were, “the true deeds or roots[br]of cruelty, of tyranny, and of treason. In

0:19:23.340,0:19:28.789
youth they bud, and afterwards grow to strength,[br]and come to perfection by means of custom.”

0:19:28.789,0:19:32.669
Montaigne poignantly decried humanity’s[br]pomposity, writing: “Presumption is our

0:19:32.669,0:19:37.720
natural and original disease. The most calamitous[br]and fragile of all creatures is man, and yet

0:19:37.720,0:19:41.899
the most arrogant. It is through the vanity[br]of this same imagination that he equals himself

0:19:41.899,0:19:46.450
to a god, that he attributes to himself divine[br]conditions, that he picks himself out and

0:19:46.450,0:19:50.639
separates himself from the crowd of other[br]creatures, curtails the just shares of other

0:19:50.639,0:19:55.879
animals his brethren and companions, and assigns[br]to them only such portions of faculties and

0:19:55.879,0:20:00.739
forces as seems to him good. How does he know,[br]by the effort of his intelligence, the interior

0:20:00.739,0:20:05.429
and secret movements and impulses of other[br]animals? By what comparison between them and

0:20:05.429,0:20:08.820
us does he infer the stupidity which he attributes[br]to them?”

0:20:08.820,0:20:12.840
The latter portions of this quote displays[br]a very important development in Renaissance

0:20:12.840,0:20:17.450
thought: that of the unique experience and[br]independent lives of non-human animals and

0:20:17.450,0:20:22.369
the revolutionary concept that their worth[br]cannot be accurately judged by human standards.

0:20:22.369,0:20:25.609
We will see this echoed by others as we move[br]forwards.

0:20:25.609,0:20:29.769
Poet Francis Quarles (1592-1644) wrote succinctly[br]of the body count left by man’s appetite.

0:20:29.769,0:20:34.950
“The birds of the air die to sustain thee;[br]The beasts of the field die to nourish thee;

0:20:34.950,0:20:39.249
The fishes of the sea die to feed thee;[br]Our stomachs are their common sepulcher,

0:20:39.249,0:20:43.220
Good God! With how many deaths are our poor[br]lives patched up?

0:20:43.220,0:20:46.429
How full of death is the life of momentary[br]man!”

0:20:46.429,0:20:50.340
Around the same time as Quarles, French physicist[br]and philosopher Pierre Gassendi (1592-1655)

0:20:50.340,0:20:54.979
expertly responded to the argument that eating[br]animals is natural because “everyone does

0:20:54.979,0:20:59.479
it,” by pointing out that “Indeed, is[br]it that man is sustained on flesh. But how

0:20:59.479,0:21:03.479
many things, let me ask, does man do every[br]day which are contrary to, or beside, his

0:21:03.479,0:21:04.099
nature?”

0:21:04.099,0:21:08.649
He further speaks to how unnatural it is for[br]humans to kill other animals. “Man lives

0:21:08.649,0:21:13.070
very well upon flesh, you say, but, if he[br]thinks this food to be natural to him, why

0:21:13.070,0:21:17.599
does he not use it as it is, as furnished[br]to him by Nature? But, in fact, he shrinks

0:21:17.599,0:21:21.929
in horror from seizing and rending living[br]or even raw flesh with his teeth, and lights

0:21:21.929,0:21:26.679
a fire to change its natural and proper condition[br]… If you answer, ‘that may be said to

0:21:26.679,0:21:31.200
be an industry ordered by Nature, by which[br]such weapons are invented,’ then, behold,

0:21:31.200,0:21:35.799
it is by the very same artificial instrument[br]that men make weapons for mutual slaughter.

0:21:35.799,0:21:40.999
Do they this at the instigation of Nature?[br]Can a use so noxious be called natural? Faculty

0:21:40.999,0:21:45.419
is given by Nature, but it is our own fault[br]that we make a perverse use of it.”

0:21:45.419,0:21:50.629
In answer to the obligatory, “Well what[br]CAN you eat?” argument comes the veritable

0:21:50.629,0:21:55.519
verbal vegan food porn of English writer John[br]Evelyn (1620-1706), who speaks with great

0:21:55.519,0:22:00.599
gusto of: “The infinitely wise and glorious[br]author of nature, who has given to plants

0:22:00.599,0:22:06.359
such astonishing properties; such fiery heat[br]in some to warm and cherish, such coolness

0:22:06.359,0:22:12.139
in others to temper and refresh, such pinguid[br]juice to nourish and feed the body, such quickening

0:22:12.139,0:22:17.559
acids to compel the appetite, and grateful[br]vehicles to court the obedience of the palate,

0:22:17.559,0:22:22.869
such vigour to renew and support our natural[br]strength, such ravishing flavour and perfumes

0:22:22.869,0:22:27.989
to recreate and delight us; in short, such[br]spirituous and active force to animate and

0:22:27.989,0:22:34.070
revive every faculty and part, to all the[br]kinds of human, and, I had almost said heavenly

0:22:34.070,0:22:37.049
capacity.”

0:22:37.049,0:22:41.940
Got me all hot and bothered. That was like[br]the 17th century’s version of a vegan Instagram

0:22:41.940,0:22:45.519
account showcasing all the tasty vegan treats.

0:22:45.519,0:22:51.200
Evelyn goes far beyond laying out this literary[br]buffet, positing that eating animals had lead

0:22:51.200,0:22:55.989
to more bloodshed between Christians than[br]any other cause, as violence against other

0:22:55.989,0:22:59.779
species inevitably translates to violence[br]against one’s own.

0:22:59.779,0:23:05.349
And now, finally, we come to Margaret Cavendish[br](1624-1674), The Duchess of Newcastle, who

0:23:05.349,0:23:09.999
wrote plays, poetry, and essays on science,[br]philosophy and nature, and was one of first

0:23:09.999,0:23:15.519
female authors to be printed, AND just so[br]happens to be the first woman ever mentioned

0:23:15.519,0:23:22.940
in the “History of Veganism” series! It’s[br]about time! Nothing like male historical bias

0:23:22.940,0:23:29.700
to turn even a vegan history series into a[br]sausage fest.

0:23:29.700,0:23:34.899
So let’s hear what the Duchess had to say.[br]Cavendish spoke against the concept of inherent

0:23:34.899,0:23:39.999
human superiority pointing to the wisdom within[br]non-human animals and arguing that it was

0:23:39.999,0:23:45.019
man’s “pride, self conceit and presumption”[br]that has misled him into judging other creatures

0:23:45.019,0:23:50.649
by human standards, not realizing that language[br]and reason could take non-human form.

0:23:50.649,0:23:54.539
“For what man knows whether fish do not[br]know more of the nature of water, and ebbing

0:23:54.539,0:23:58.769
and flowing and the saltness of the sea? Or[br]whether birds do not know more of the nature

0:23:58.769,0:24:03.669
and degrees of air, or the causes of tempests?[br]Or whether worms do not know more of the nature

0:24:03.669,0:24:07.590
of the earth and how plants are produced?[br]Or bees of the several sorts of juices and

0:24:07.590,0:24:12.279
flowers than men?…Man may have one way of[br]knowledge…and creatures another way, and

0:24:12.279,0:24:16.460
yet other creatures’ manner or way may be[br][as] intelligible and instructive to each

0:24:16.460,0:24:17.559
other as Man’s.”

0:24:17.559,0:24:22.759
And, on the unearned entitlement of humans,[br]“Yet man doth think himself so gentle, mild

0:24:22.759,0:24:28.269
When he of creatures is most cruel wild.[br]And is so proud, thinks only he shall live,

0:24:28.269,0:24:33.179
That God a god-like nature did him give.[br]And that all creatures for his sake alone,

0:24:33.179,0:24:35.669
Was made for him to tyrannize upon.”

0:24:35.669,0:24:40.009
French Bishop and Theologian Jacques-Bénigne[br]Bossuet (1627-1704) harkened back to the days

0:24:40.009,0:24:45.749
before the Biblical fall of man to again highlight[br]how much humans must disguise animal products

0:24:45.749,0:24:50.340
in order to consume them. “The nourishment[br]which without violence men derived from the

0:24:50.340,0:24:54.580
fruits which fell from the trees of themselves,[br]and from the herbs which also ripened with

0:24:54.580,0:24:58.999
equal ease, was, without doubt, some relic[br]of the first innocence and of the gentleness

0:24:58.999,0:25:03.049
for which we were formed. Now to get food[br]we have to shed blood in spite of the horror

0:25:03.049,0:25:07.349
which it naturally inspires in us; and all[br]the refinements of which we avail ourselves,

0:25:07.349,0:25:11.849
in covering our tables, hardly suffices to[br]disguise for us the bloody corpses which we

0:25:11.849,0:25:13.649
have to devour to support life.”

0:25:13.649,0:25:18.340
He, like Evelyn, warns of the transference[br]of violence against non-human animals to violence

0:25:18.340,0:25:22.719
against fellow humans, stating that: “Life,[br]already shortened, is still further abridged

0:25:22.719,0:25:27.809
by the savage violences which are introduced[br]into the life of the human species. Man, whom

0:25:27.809,0:25:32.169
in the first ages we have seen spare the life[br]of other animals, is accustomed henceforward

0:25:32.169,0:25:37.239
to spare the life not even of his fellow-men.[br]It is in vain that God forbade, immediately

0:25:37.239,0:25:41.960
after the Deluge, the shedding of human blood;[br]in vain, in order to save some vestiges of

0:25:41.960,0:25:46.299
the mildness of our nature, while permitting[br]the feeding on flesh did he prohibit consumption

0:25:46.299,0:25:50.580
of the blood. Human murders multiplied beyond[br]all calculation."

0:25:50.580,0:25:55.739
Around the exact same time of Bossuet, English[br]naturalist John Ray (1627-1705) echoed the

0:25:55.739,0:25:59.619
arguments of Gassendi. "There is no doubt,[br]that man is not built to be a carnivorous

0:25:59.619,0:26:03.899
animal [as] hunt and voracity are unnatural[br]to him. Man has neither the sharp pointed

0:26:03.899,0:26:08.919
teeth or claws to slaughter his prey. On the[br]contrary his hands are made to pick fruits,

0:26:08.919,0:26:11.619
berries and vegetables and teeth appropriate[br]to chew them."

0:26:11.619,0:26:16.169
He again implores, "Everything we need to[br]feed ourselves and to restore and please us

0:26:16.169,0:26:20.489
is abundantly provided in the inexhaustible[br]store of Nature.” Ray closes out with what

0:26:20.489,0:26:25.999
really amounts to an “our food’s better[br]than your food” taunt: “In short our orchards

0:26:25.999,0:26:30.279
offer all the delights imaginable while the[br]slaughter houses and butchers are full of

0:26:30.279,0:26:35.799
congealed blood and abominable stench.”[br][Nailed it.]

0:26:35.799,0:26:39.609
Doctor and medical reformer Philippe Hecquet[br](1661-1737), who served almost exclusively

0:26:39.609,0:26:44.169
the poor, only seeing the wealthy when forced,[br]pointed out the obvious examples in nature

0:26:44.169,0:26:49.239
of the power of plant-based eating in answer[br]to those who doubted such a diet could sustain

0:26:49.239,0:26:53.929
strength. “'How,' they say, 'can we be supported[br]on Grains, which furnish but dry meal, fitter

0:26:53.929,0:26:58.070
to cloy than to nourish; on Fruits, which[br]are but condensed water?' But this … condensed

0:26:58.070,0:27:02.659
water is the same that has caused the Trees[br]to attain so great bulk … Besides, how can

0:27:02.659,0:27:07.159
men affect to fear failure in strength, in[br]eating what nourishes even the most robust

0:27:07.159,0:27:11.109
animals, who would become even formidable[br]to us, if only they knew their own strength."

0:27:11.109,0:27:15.619
Hecquet also comments upon how severely we[br]must prepare animal products in order to find

0:27:15.619,0:27:20.309
them palatable, yet how readily available[br]are the multitudes of fruit and other foods

0:27:20.309,0:27:22.999
from nature, which are more suited for humans.

0:27:22.999,0:27:28.809
The good doctor expresses an exasperated lament[br]that I daresay is still shared by many a vegan

0:27:28.809,0:27:33.369
today. “It is incredible how much Prejudice[br]has been allowed to operate in favour of meat,

0:27:33.369,0:27:37.629
while so many facts are opposed to the pretended[br]necessity of its use.”

0:27:37.629,0:27:42.019
While receiving the formal approval and commendation[br]of several doctors regent of the Faculty of

0:27:42.019,0:27:46.849
Medicine of Paris University, Hecquet’s[br]writings speaking to the merits of plant-based

0:27:46.849,0:27:51.659
eating, received much insult and ridicule[br]from anonymous professional critics of his

0:27:51.659,0:27:55.399
time, better known as The Trolls of the Renaissance.

0:27:55.399,0:28:00.919
Let’s close it out with Thomas Tryon (1634-1703),[br]an English merchant, author and passionate

0:28:00.919,0:28:05.759
vegetarian.[5] With a basis in his religious[br]beliefs, Tryon spoke to the ethics of consuming

0:28:05.759,0:28:10.429
animals, saying: “Refrain at all times from[br]such Foods as cannot be procured without violence

0:28:10.429,0:28:15.440
and oppression,” and “For there is greater[br]evil and misery attends mankind by killing,

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horrifying and oppressing his fellow creature[br]and eating their flesh … than is generally

0:28:19.330,0:28:24.940
apprehended or imagined. Man’s strong inclination[br]after flesh and his making so light and small

0:28:24.940,0:28:29.419
a matter of killing and oppressing inferior[br]creatures, does manifest what principle has

0:28:29.419,0:28:34.309
got the dominion in him … It should be considered[br]that flesh and fish cannot be eaten without

0:28:34.309,0:28:37.570
violence and doing that which a man would[br]not be done unto.”

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I hope that you enjoyed this look into the[br]development of veganism in Renaissance times.

0:28:42.519,0:28:48.789
The time it took to produce this video clocks[br]in at about __hours over a period of about

0:28:48.789,0:28:53.419
5 days, including ample time creeping around[br]my local library for sources. If you’d like

0:28:53.419,0:28:57.359
to help support Bite Size Vegan so I can keep[br]putting in the long hours to bring you this

0:28:57.359,0:29:01.509
educational resource, please check out the[br]support links in the video description below

0:29:01.509,0:29:05.759
where you can give a one-time donation or[br]receive perks and rewards for your support

0:29:05.759,0:29:10.609
by joining the Nugget Army- the link for that[br]is also in the iCard sidebar.

0:29:10.609,0:29:14.629
Now I’d love to hear your thoughts on the[br]Renaissance of veganism and some of the concepts

0:29:14.629,0:29:18.979
brought forth. And remember, citations to[br]everything I’ve covered (as well as many

0:29:18.979,0:29:22.149
further resources), are available in the blog[br]post.

0:29:22.149,0:29:25.969
If you enjoyed this video, please give it[br]a thumbs up and share it around for the love

0:29:25.969,0:29:30.070
of vegan history. If you’re new, be sure[br]to hit that big red subscribe button down

0:29:30.070,0:29:34.269
there for more awesome vegan content every[br]Monday, Wednesday, and some Fridays; and to

0:29:34.269,0:29:38.719
not miss out on the rest of the vegan history[br]series. Next time we’re on to “The Age

0:29:38.720,0:29:43.620
of Enlightenment!” Now go live vegan, make[br]history, and I’ll see you soon.