Animals awaken, first facially, then bodily. Men’s bodies wake before their faces do. The animal sleeps within its body, man sleeps with his body in his mind.
—Malcolm de Chazal (1902–81) Mauritian Writer, Painter, Visionary
Be a good animal, true to your animal instincts.
—D. H. Lawrence (1885–1930) English Novelist, Playwright, Poet, Essayist, Literary Critic
Nothing to be done really about animals. Anything you do looks foolish. The answer isn’t in us. It’s almost as if we’re put here on earth to show how silly they aren’t.
—Russell Hoban (1925–2011) American Novelist, Children’s Writer
Shall we never have done with that cliche, so stupid that it could only be human, about the sympathy of animals for man when he is unhappy? Animals love happiness almost as much as we do. A fit of crying disturbs them, they’ll sometimes imitate sobbing, and for a moment they’ll reflect our sadness. But they flee unhappiness as they flee fever, and I believe that in the long run they are capable of boycotting it.
—Colette (1873–1954) French Novelist, Performer
Animals are stylized characters in a kind of old saga — stylized because even the most acute of them have little leeway as they play out their parts.
—Edward Hoagland (b.1932) American Essayist, Novelist
The thing that differentiates man from animals is money.
—Gertrude Stein (1874–1946) American Writer
Animals, whom we have made our slaves, we do not like to consider our equal.
—Charles Darwin (1809–82) English Naturalist
Mankind differs from the animals only by a little and most people throw that away.
—Confucius (551–479 BCE) Chinese Philosopher
The animals of the world exist for their own reasons. They were not made for humans any more than black people were made for whites or women for men.
—Alice Walker (b.1944) American Novelist, Activist
The lower animals, like man, manifestly feel pleasure and pain, happiness and misery. Happiness is never better exhibited than by young animals, such as puppies, kittens, lambs, &c., when playing together, like our own children. Even insects play together, as has been described by that excellent observer, P. Huber, who saw ants chasing and pretending to bite each other, like so many puppies.
—Charles Darwin (1809–82) English Naturalist
We are alone, absolutely alone on this chance planet; and amid all the forms of life that surround us, not one, excepting the dog has made an alliance with us.
—Max De Pree (1924–2017) American Businessman
Drinking, when we are not thirsty and making love all year round, madam; that is all there is to distinguish us from other animals.
—Pierre Beaumarchais (1732–99) French Inventor, Diplomat, Musician, Fugitive, Revolutionary
Cows are amongst the gentlest of breathing creatures; none show more passionate tenderness to their young when deprived of them; and, in short, I am not ashamed to profess a deep love for these quiet creatures.
—Thomas de Quincey (1785–1859) English Essayist, Critic
Never look for the birds of this year in the nests of the last.
—Miguel de Cervantes (1547–1616) Spanish Novelist
From the oyster to the eagle, from the swine to the tiger, all animals are to be found in men and each of them exists in some man, sometimes several at the time. Animals are nothing but the portrayal of our virtues and vices made manifest to our eyes, the visible reflections of our souls. God displays them to us to give us food for thought.
—Victor Hugo (1802–85) French Novelist
Animals are such agreeable friends—they ask no questions; they pass no criticisms.
—George Eliot (Mary Anne Evans) (1819–80) English Novelist
Nothing can be more obvious than that all animals were created solely and exclusively for the use of man.
—Thomas Love Peacock (1785–1866) English Satirist, Novelist, Author
Mankind’s true moral test, its fundamental test (which lies deeply buried from view), consists of its attitude towards those who are at its mercy: animals. And in this respect mankind has suffered a fundamental debacle, a debacle so fundamental that all others stem from it.
—Milan Kundera (b.1929) Czech Novelist
People are not going to care about animal conservation unless they think that animals are worthwhile.
—David Attenborough (b.1926) English Naturalist, Broadcaster
Man, of all the animals, is probably the only one to regard himself as a great delicacy.
—Jacques Cousteau (1910–97) French Oceanographer, Documentary Director
Man is an animal which, alone among the animals, refuses to be satisfied by the fulfillment of animal desires.
—Alexander Graham Bell (1847–1922) Scottish-born American Inventor, Engineer, Academic
Animals used to provide a lowlife way to kill and get away with it, as they do still, but, more intriguingly, for some people they are an aperture through which wounds drain. The scapegoat of olden times, driven off for the bystanders sins, has become a tender thing, a running injury. There, running away is me: hurt it and you are hurting me.
—Edward Hoagland (b.1932) American Essayist, Novelist
A dog is the only thing on earth that loves you more than he loves himself.
—Josh Billings (Henry Wheeler Shaw) (1818–85) American Humorist, Author, Lecturer
The elephant, not only the largest but the most intelligent of animals, provides us with an excellent example. It is faithful and tenderly loving to the female of its choice, mating only every third year and then for no more than five days, and so secretly as never to be seen, until, on the sixth day, it appears and goes at once to wash its whole body in the river, unwilling to return to the herd until thus purified. Such good and modest habits are an example to husband and wife.
—Francis de Sales (1567–1622) French Catholic Saint
History is a people’s memory, and without a memory, man is demoted to the lower animals.
—Malcolm X (1925–65) American Civil Rights Leader