Focuses on one of the major debates in science - how closely does mental processing in animals resembles mental processing in humans. This book aims to answer the question of whether and to what extent non-human animals are rational, that is, whether any animal behaviour can be regarded as the result of a rational thought processes.

Are there any human rights that apply to all women and all men in all cultures at all times? Can we ground human rights in an abstract rationality possessed by every human being? Or, as some philosophers have claimed, are attempts to ground human rights doomed to failure? Do human rights in any case need such grounding? On Human Rights, the second book in the Oxford Amnesty Lecture Series, presents the opinions of seven distinguished contributors who approach the problem of universal human rights from a variety of perspectives using a wealth of contemporary and historical material. The essays...