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Complete PICLE corpus of essays by Polish advanced EFL students (330,000)

/^t/While the twentieth century man is preoccupied with his rights, vegetarianism reminds him about his duties towards the world, and his moral potential. The philosophy shatters meat-eaters' hierarchy of values based on acquisitive conquering, man's dominance and superiority. It makes people aware that common sense and compassion for suffering creatures are essential for profound spiritual and mental development. Man's responsibility to animals stems from the fact that the nervous system of animals reared for slaughter is developed to a degree that allows them to experience all negative emotions caused by husbandry and slaughter. Since responsibility is a privilege, human cruelty towards animals cannot be rationalised. Vegetarianism frees man from the burden of egoistic superiority over the nature, and the guilt for consciously inflicted unnecessary suffering. It also provides grounds for the alternation of one's philosophy of life according to the laws of nature, and its universal moral code.