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Of Mice and Men: PETA’s Animal-Friendly Idioms as a Strategy Against Speciesism?

Abstract

    Language shapes our understanding of animals and can influence social attitudes and behaviors toward them. Despite the progress in animal welfare, the English language continues to perpetuate prejudice against animals that can justify violence against them. To combat linguistic speciesism and promote non-discriminatory language, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) proposed animal-friendly alternatives to replace speciesist idioms. Examples of these alternatives include feed two birds with one scone and bring home the bagels, suggested instead of kill two birds with one stone and bring home the bacon. This study uses linguistic and critical discourse analyses to examine the corpus of 166 words and phrases comprising original and animal-friendly idioms. The study objective is to assess the potential of PETA’s alternative expressions to replace discriminatory language. The paper argues that while some animal-friendly alternatives might gain public acceptance, others may be too unfamiliar or contrived to be widely adopted. Additionally, these expressions could backfire and undermine the animal rights movement by making it appear radical or out-of-touch. Despite the limitations, PETA’s campaign has the potential to raise awareness about speciesism in the English language and promote non-discriminatory language use in applied linguistics, especially among young learners and non-native English speakers.

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Of Mice and Men: PETA’s Animal-Friendly Idioms as a Strategy Against Speciesism?

Author: Olena Fomenko
Year: 2023
DOI: 10.35321/all88-08
Source: https://journals.lki.lt/actalinguisticalithuanica/article/download/2244/2337
S aipsniai / A icles 165
OLENA FOMENKO
Ta as She chenko Na ional Uni e si y o Kyi
ORCID id: o cid.o g/0000-0002-2614-0883
Fields o esea ch: c i ical discou se analysis,
sociolinguis ics, onomas ics, na ion b anding, cul u al s udies.
DOI: doi.o g/10.35321/all88-08
OF MICE AND MEN: PETA’S
ANIMAL-FRIENDLY IDIOMS
AS A STRATEGY AGAINST
SPECIESISM?
Apie peles i žmones: PETA gy ūnams
d augiškos idiomos kaip s a egija p ieš
ūšiškumą?
ANNOTATION
Language shapes ou unde s anding o animals and can in luence social a i udes and
beha io s owa d hem. Despi e he p og ess in animal wel a e, he English language con inues
o pe pe ua e p ejudice agains animals ha can jus i y iolence agains hem. To comba
linguis ic speciesism and p omo e non-disc imina o y language, People o he E hical
T ea men o Animals (PETA) p oposed animal- iendly al e na i es o eplace speciesis
idioms. Examples o hese al e na i es include eed wo bi ds wi h one scone and b ing home
he bagels, sugges ed ins ead o kill wo bi ds wi h one s one and b ing home he bacon. This
s udy uses linguis ic and c i ical discou se analyses o examine he co pus o 166 wo ds and
ph ases comp ising o iginal and animal- iendly idioms. The s udy objec i e is o assess he
po en ial o PETA’s al e na i e exp essions o eplace disc imina o y language. The pape
a gues ha while some animal- iendly al e na i es migh gain public accep ance, o he s
may be oo un amilia o con i ed o be widely adop ed. Addi ionally, hese exp essions
could back i e and unde mine he animal igh s mo emen by making i appea adical o
ou -o - ouch. Despi e he limi a ions, PETA’s campaign has he po en ial o aise awa eness
abou speciesism in he English language and p omo e non-disc imina o y language use in
applied linguis ics, especially among young lea ne s and non-na i e English speake s.
KEYWORDS: speciesism, PETA, animal- iendly idioms, linguis ic disc imina ion,
c i ical discou se analysis, applied linguis ics.
OLENA FOMENKO
166 Ac a Linguis ica Li huanica LXXXVIII
ANOTACIJA
Kalba o muoja mūsų sup a imą apie gy ūnus i gali pa eik i socialines nuos a as i elgesį
su jais. Nepaisan pažangos gy ūnų ge o ės s i yje, anglų kalba is da ska ina ūšių disk i-
minaciją, ku i gali pa eisin i smu ą p ieš gy ūnus. No ėdama ko o i su ling is iniu ūšiš-
kumu i ska in i nedisk iminacinę kalbą, o ganizacija „People o he E hical T ea men o
Animals“ (lie . „Žmonės už e išką elgesį su gy ūnais“) ie oje ūšies požiū iu disk iminuo-
jančių idiomų pasiūlė gy ūnams d augiškus al e na y ius posakius. Ta p šių al e na y ų y a
„ eed wo bi ds wi h one scone“ i „b ing home he bagels“ ie oj „kill wo bi ds wi h one
s one“ (lie . ienu šū iu nušau i du zuikius ‘a lik i du eikalus ienu ka u’) i „b ing home he
bacon“ (lie . pa neš i namo lašinių ‘uždi b i, pa neš i a lygį’). Remian is ling is ine i k i ine
disku so analize, šiame y ime siekiama iš i i 166 žodžius i azes, suda ančias o iginalias
i gy ūnams d augiškas idiomas. Siekiama į e in i PETA pasiūly ų al e na y ių idiomų po-
encialą pakeis i disk iminacinę kalbą. S aipsnyje eigiama, kad no s kai ku ios gy ūnams
d augiškos idiomos gali sėkmingai įsi i in i isuomenės gy enime, ki os gali bū i pe nelyg
nea pažįs amos a nena ū alios, kad bū ų plačiai p iim os. Be o, šie posakiai galė ų neigiamai
pa eik i i pakenk i gy ūnų eisių judėjimui, pa e čian jį adikaliu a a i ūkusiu nuo ealy-
bės. Nepaisan galimų ūkumų, PETA kampanija u i po encialą ugdy i isuomenės sąmo-
ningumą apie ūšiškumą anglų kalboje i ska in i nedisk iminacinę kalbą aikomosios kalbo-
y os s i yje, ypač a p besimokančio jaunimo i žmonių, ku iems anglų kalba nė a gim oji.
ESMINIAI ŽODŽIAI: ūšiškumas, PETA, gy ūnams d augiškos idiomos, ling is inė
disk iminacija, k i inė disku so analizė, aikomoji kalbo y a.
1. INTRODUCTION
In Decembe 2018, an Ame ican animal igh s o ganiza ion People o he
E hical T ea men o Animals (PETA) spa ked c i icism a e u ging English-
language speake s o eplace speciesis idioms wi h animal- iendly al e na i es.
PETA a gued ha exp essions kill wo bi ds wi h one s one, b ing home he
bacon and bea a dead ho se we e no di e en om acis o homophobic ph ases
and, he e o e, had o be eplaced wi h al e na i es, such as eed wo bi ds wi h
one scone, b ing home he bagels, and eed a ed ho se (PETA 2018). While he
ini ia i e ecei ed mixed esponses, i aised impo an ques ions abou he
ole o language in ein o cing o challenging speciesism and he po en ial o
language change o p omo e he non-disc imina o y ea men o animals.
The p esen s udy uses he case o PETA’s animal- iendly idioms o add ess
he issue o linguis ic speciesism. The objec i e o his s udy is wo old: i s ly, o
c i ically examine he animal- iendly idioms p oposed by PETA, and secondly,
o assess he po en ial o he al e na i e exp essions o eplace speciesis
language. The s udy uses a c i ical discou se app oach o assess he s eng hs and
S aipsniai / A icles 167
O Mice and Men: PETA’s Animal-F iendly
Idioms as a S a egy Agains Speciesism?
limi a ions o PETA’s sugges ed exp essions o unde s and hei e ec i eness
in challenging and eplacing speciesis language. In doing so, his esea ch
con ibu es o a be e unde s anding o he ole o language in pe pe ua ing o
challenging speciesism. Ul ima ely, he s udy seeks o con ibu e o c ea ing a
mo e inclusi e and equi able language by challenging and ans o ming how we
speak abou and ela e o non-human animals.
The esea ch da a comp ise he speciesis exp essions ha p omo e iolence
agains animals selec ed by PETA and he al e na i e ph ases sugges ed by he
o ganiza ion o eplace hem. Mo e speci ically, he s udy analyzes a co pus o
animal- iendly idioms comp ising 166 exp essions (88 o iginal English wo ds
and ph ases and 88 al e na i e ones) p esen ed on PETA’s o icial websi e.
The o ganiza ion has upda ed he lis since he o iginal wee published in
Decembe 2018 (PETA n.d.).
The pape begins wi h a b ie accoun o he o igin and de ini ions o he
e m “speciesism”, ollowed by an o e iew o app oaches o speciesism in
linguis ics. I hen p oceeds o analyze he al e na i e animal- iendly idioms
sugges ed by PETA and hei po en ial o eplace speciesis language. Finally,
he pape discusses he implica ions o PETA’s ini ia i e o applied linguis ics,
pa icula ly in aising awa eness abou speciesism among English-language
speake s and p omo ing non-disc imina o y language use.
2. THE ORIGIN AND DEFINITIONS
OF SPECIESISM
The e m “speciesism” was coined in 1970 by B i ish psychologis Richa d
D. Ryde as a way o desc ibe disc imina ion agains non-human animals in a
pamphle c i icizing animal expe imen a ion (Ryde 2000: 5; 2010). The wo d
was inspi ed by simila e ms such as “ acism” and “sexism”. A he ime, Ryde
was a clinical psychologis a he Wa ne o d Hospi al in Ox o d and a membe o
he Ox o d g oup, which included uni e si y acul y and s uden s who belie ed
ha disc imina ion agains o he species was i a ional and unjus , much like
disc imina ion based on an indi idual’s ace o sex.
Since hen he concep o speciesism has gained widesp ead accep ance and
is equen ly used in a ious domains beyond animal expe imen a ion. In his
seminal wo k Animal Libe a ion philosophe Pe e Singe de ined speciesism as
“a p ejudice o a i ude o bias in a o o he in e es s o membe s o one’s own
species and agains hose o membe s o o he species” (Singe 2015, Chap e 1,
pa a. 13). Singe ’s de ini ion d aws om Je emy Ben ham’s p inciple o equal
conside a ion o in e es s, which applies o animals based on hei capaci y o
OLENA FOMENKO
168 Ac a Linguis ica Li huanica LXXXVIII
expe ience eelings and sensa ions. Singe a gues ha animals should be ea ed
as independen sen ien beings whose in e es s ough o be conside ed he same
as hose o people.
Singe ’s book p o oundly impac ed he animal igh s mo emen and inspi ed
Ing id Newki k, who ounded and became he p esiden o PETA. Newki k
desc ibed Singe ’s wo k as a “philosophical bombshell” ha o e e changed
he con e sa ion abou ou ea men o animals (Newki k n.d.). Fu he
acknowledging he powe ul e ec o Singe ’s wo k, animal igh s ad oca e and
au ho Joan Dunaye p omo ed he concep o “speciesism” in he linguis ic
wo ks. Dunaye ’s seminal book Animal Equali y: Language and Libe a ion (2001)
p esen s a aluable esou ce o anyone in e es ed in animal igh s and language.
Schola s and p ac i ione s om a ious ields ha e joined philosophe s in
p omo ing animal igh s wi hin hei espec i e domains. Biologis s, ecologis s,
and e e ina ians ad oca e o be e animal wel a e p ac ices, while lawye s and
policymake s wo k o es ablish mo e obus legal amewo ks o p o ec animals.
As a esul , animal igh s a e becoming a mains eam conce n in many domains,
wi h businesses, go e nmen s, and indi iduals all aking s eps o add ess issues
ela ed o animal wel a e and e hics (Linzey, Cla ke 2004; STN 2012; Kalo 2017;
PH 2018; Linzey, Linzey 2019).
Despi e he g owing in e es in speciesism, he e was li le e o o cla i y
i s meaning. Acco ding o Osca Ho a, an animal e hics schola , he e is only
one kind o speciesism, despi e di e ing iews and posi ions (Ho a 2010: 243).
Ho a and F auke Albe smeie (2020) u he a gue ha he lack o a clea
de ini ion o speciesism has caused a poo unde s anding o he concep . As a
esul , he e m has been employed in ways ha may display a speciesis bias.
Upon conduc ing an exhaus i e analysis o exis ing de ini ions o speciesism,
Ho a and Albe smeie ha e p oposed a “wide and e alua i e” de ini ion
o he e m as “unjus i ied conside a ion o ea men o hose who a e no
classi ied as belonging o a ce ain species” (Ho a, Albe smeie 2020: 1). This
app oach iews and ea s speciesism as a o m o disc imina ion, simila o
o he disc imina o y p ac ices, such as acism and sexism. Fu he mo e, his
de ini ion has implica ions o unde s anding speciesism as a se ious e hical
issue, which equi es g ea e a en ion om he public and schola s.
3. DEFINING “SPECIESISM” IN
DICTIONARIES AND ENCYCLOPEDIAS
The e m “speciesism” gained ecogni ion in he English language and
was o icially included in he Ox o d English Dic iona y (OED) in 1985
S aipsniai / A icles 169
O Mice and Men: PETA’s Animal-F iendly
Idioms as a S a egy Agains Speciesism?
(Ryde 2017: 77). The ODE de ines speciesism as “disc imina ion agains o
exploi a ion o animal species by human beings, based on an assump ion o
mankind’s supe io i y”, highligh ing he ole o exploi a ion.
O he majo English language dic iona ies also ha e en ies on speciesism,
bu hey p o ide a ying de ini ions o he e m in B i ish and Ame ican
English. Fo ins ance, he B i ish de ini ion o he e m in he Collins Dic iona y
desc ibes speciesism as “a belie o humans ha all o he species o animals a e
in e io and may he e o e be used o human bene i wi hou ega d o he
su e ing in lic ed.” In con as , he Ame ican de ini ion in he same dic iona y
desc ibes speciesism as “disc imina ion agains o exploi a ion o animals based
on he assump ion ha humans a e supe io o and mo e impo an han all o he
species” (CD). These di e ing de ini ions highligh cul u al a ia ions in he
in e p e a ion o he concep , wi h he B i ish English de ini ion emphasizing
belie s and he Ame ican English de ini ion emphasizing p ac ices and beha io .
Mul iple specialized dic iona ies, encyclopedias, and handbooks wi h en ies
on speciesism o e a ying de ini ions o he e m. The Ox o d Dic iona y o
Philosophy de ines speciesism as “ he imp ope s ance o e using espec o he
li es, digni y, igh s o needs o animals o o he species” (Blackbu n 2016: 453).
In A Dic iona y o Psychology, speciesism is desc ibed as “ he in insic supe io i y
o he human species o e all o he s, o en accompanied by an assump ion ha
human beings a e he e o e jus i ied in exploi ing non-human animals o hei
own ad an age” (Colman 2015: 717). Simila ly, A Dic iona y o C i ical Theo y
de ines speciesism as “[a] p ejudice o excep ionalism exhibi ed by one species
( ypically humans) wi h ega d o ano he species ( ypically animals in gene al)”
(Buchanan 2018). The Encyclopedia B i annica p o ides a sepa a e en y on
speciesism in he philosophy and eligion sec ion (Duignan 2010) and b ie ly
men ions he phenomenon in se e al o he a icles.
Despi e i s signi icance in a ious ields such as philosophy, psychology,
sociology, and c i ical animal heo y, speciesism has no ecei ed adequa e
a en ion in linguis ic dic iona ies and encyclopedias. Majo English language
dic iona ies and encyclopedias, such as The Camb idge Encyclopedia o Language,
The Camb idge Encyclopedia o he Language Sciences, and The Encyclopedia o
Applied Linguis ics, lack sepa a e en ies o men ions o “speciesism”. While
i is b ie ly ouched upon in he En i onmen and Language a icle unde he
Themes in Language and En i onmen subsec ion o he Encyclopedia o Language
and Linguis ics (Mühlhäusle 2006: 204), no comp ehensi e in o ma ion on
linguis ic speciesism o any de ini ion o he e m is p o ided. The omission
o such en ies limi s he accessibili y and unde s anding o speciesism wi hin
linguis ic s udies.

OLENA FOMENKO
170 Ac a Linguis ica Li huanica LXXXVIII
4. SPECIESISM AS A LINGUISTIC
PHENOMENON
Linguis ic speciesism is a o m o disc imina ion o bias in language use ha
a o s o p i ileges ce ain species, ypically humans, o e o he s. I in ol es
language ein o cing he belie ha humans a e supe io o o he species and
ha hei in e es s and expe iences a e mo e impo an o ele an han he
expe iences o non-human animals. Linguis ic speciesism can mani es in a ious
ways, o ins ance, h ough an h opocen ic assump ions, de oga o y language,
speciesis slu s, o exclusiona y language ha dis ega ds o ma ginalizes non-
human animals. I can also mani es in he ep esen a ion and po ayal o
animals in language, li e a u e, media, and o he o ms o communica ion.
Linguis ic speciesism is a opic o ongoing deba e and s udy wi hin linguis ics,
animal s udies and e hics as i aises ques ions abou language, powe dynamics,
and e hical conside a ions in human-animal ela ionships.
Michael Halliday, he ounde o Sys emic Func ional Linguis ics, is conside ed
he i s o in oduce he concep o speciesism in Applied Linguis ics. In his
a icle “New Ways o Meaning: The Challenge o Applied Linguis ics” (2006)
p esen ed a he Nin h Wo ld Cong ess o Applied Linguis ics in 1990, Halliday
a gues ha social and poli ical issues a e linguis ically cons uc ed and ha
humans’ special posi ion is s uc u ally in eg a ed in o he language sys em.
In es iga ions in o speciesism in Ecolinguis ics we e signi ican ly in luenced
by Halliday’s c i icism o he language sys em. Wi hin his ield, esea che s
p ima ily ocus on discu si e ep esen a ions o animals, aking a c i ical
app oach owa ds he opic (Cook, Sealey 2018). No able s udies in his a ea
include wo ks by A an S ibbe (2003; 2006; 2012), Joan Dunaye (2003), Alwin
Fill, Pe e Mühlhäusle (2006), and Reinha d Heube ge (2003; 2007).
Guy Cook and Alison Sealey (2018) classi ied all s udies on linguis ic
speciesism in o h ee main ca ego ies: (1) esea ch p ima ily abou language and
inciden ally abou animals, (2) esea ch p ima ily abou animals and inciden ally
abou language, and (3) wo ks ha ocus on bo h language and animals.
Fu he mo e, hey ound ha mos esea ch on linguis ic speciesism alls in o
he i s ca ego y, wi h he language being he p ima y ocus and animals only
inciden ally add essed. Howe e , hey a gue ha i is i al o include animals as
a cen al ocus in language s udies because linguis ic ep esen a ions o animals
can ha e eal-wo ld implica ions o hei ea men and wel a e.
Animal Equali y: Language and Libe a ion by J. Dunaye (2001) emains one
o he mos signi ican wo ks on linguis ic speciesism. Th ough he analysis o
common ph ases and e ms used o e e o animals, such as beas s, c i e s, and
S aipsniai / A icles 171
O Mice and Men: PETA’s Animal-F iendly
Idioms as a S a egy Agains Speciesism?
li es ock, Dunaye c i iques how language ein o ces speciesism and disc imina o y
a i udes owa d animals. She also examines he use o language in a ious con ex s,
including scien i ic esea ch, ad e ising, and popula cul u e, o demons a e
how he language we use shapes ou a i udes and beha io s owa d animals.
Fu he mo e, Dunaye emphasizes he impo ance o linguis ic awa eness and
encou ages eade s o challenge ha m ul p ac ices and p omo e language ha
e lec s a mo e compassiona e and espec ul iew o non-human animals.
Ano he comp ehensi e s udy in o linguis ic speciesism is Animals E ased by
A. S ibbe (2012). The book highligh s he disappea ance and e asu e o animals
om ou consciousness, no only in he sense o ex inc ion bu also in e ms o
hei ep esen a ion h ough discou se. S ibbe (2012: 3) a gues ha discou ses
ep esen ing animals in disc imina o y and inhumane ways a e “des uc i e”
and sugges s c ea ing al e na i e discou ses ha p omo e econnec ion o
animals and na u e.
O he s udies ha e ound ha animal names used me apho ically in gene al
discou se can ein o ce speciesism. In addi ion, wo ds whose “co e” meaning
is o name an animal a e o en used in his way o e e o human a ibu es
and alues, as animal me apho s o humans a e p e alen in gene al discou se
(Cook, Sealey 2018: 317). And ew Goa ly (2006) ound ha such me apho s
a e o en pejo a i e, sugges ing a desi e o dis ance ou sel es om animals
concep ually and emo ionally. Animals wi h indi idual names can be classi ied
as “pe s” o “membe s o he amily”, while a m animals a e less likely o be
named, bu when hey a e, hey a e o en known o hei “cha ac e ” (Cook,
Sealey 2018: 317). Fu he mo e, p o e bs o en depic nonhuman animals
being killed o used by humans, making such ac s seem accep able due o he
speciesis belie ha humans ha e he igh o exploi animals o hei pu poses
and enjoymen (Gue a a Labaca 2017: 4).
Howe e , esea ch on animal idioms has p ima ily ocused on lexicog aphic,
psycholinguis ic, neu olinguis ic, and compu a ional pe spec i es, simila o
he analysis o o he idioma ic exp essions (Espinal, Ma eu 2019). Cook and
Sealey (2018) emphasize he necessi y o c i ically examining how animals a e
ep esen ed in language and discou se. They also highligh he impo ance o
in e disciplina y app oaches in ecolinguis ics ha uni e schola s om a ious
ields o gain a mo e comp ehensi e unde s anding o he in ica e ela ionships
be ween language, cul u e, and he na u al wo ld. The e o e, i is essen ial o
c i ically analyze how animals a e po ayed in language and explo e al e na i e
ways o speaking abou hem ha challenge ha m ul s e eo ypes and p omo e
g ea e empa hy and espec . Such c i ical analysis can help o iden i y and
add ess ins ances o speciesism in language and encou age he de elopmen and
adop ion o non-disc imina o y language use.
OLENA FOMENKO
172 Ac a Linguis ica Li huanica LXXXVIII
5. THE ANALYSIS OF PETA’S
ANIMAL-FRIENDLY IDIOMS
People o he E hical T ea men o Animals (PETA) is a well-known
Ame ican nonp o i o ganiza ion ha has been a ocal ad oca e o animal
igh s in a ious indus ies such as ag icul u e, clo hing, and en e ainmen .
The o ganiza ion is known o i s hough -p o oking campaigns ha u ilize
slogans, images, and idioma ic exp essions o p omo e language change and
challenge socie al no ms a ound animal c uel y.
PETA’s ini ia i e, also known as he “B inging home he bagels” campaign, o
eplace disc imina o y idioms wi h animal- iendly al e na i es is one example
o he o ganiza ion’s ongoing e o s o p omo e a mo e compassiona e wo ld
o all animals. PETA launched he campaign on i s social media pla o ms in
Decembe 2018. The ini ia i e has become one o PETA’s mos publicized and
con o e sial campaigns.
As pa o he campaign, he o ganiza ion sugges ed al e na i e exp essions
o common idioms such as kill wo bi ds wi h one s one, bea a dead ho se, and
b ing home he bacon. In pa icula , PETA ecommended using eed wo bi ds wi h
one scone, ee a ed ho se, and b ing home he bagels. I explained he easoning
behind he campaign by s a ing ha wo ds ma e , and ou language mus e ol e
as ou unde s anding o social jus ice e ol es. The o ganiza ion’s message was
clea : emo e speciesism om you daily con e sa ions. The campaign ecei ed
a s ong media eac ion, wi h The Washing on Pos epo ing in Decembe 2018
ha he wee had o e 3,000 e wee s, 9,000 likes, and 1,500 commen s, and
as he a icle s a ed, “I ’s sa e o say people we en’ oo h illed” (Wang 2018).
The ini ia i e also ea u es a se ies o pos e s and educa ional ma e ials wi h
speciesis exp essions and hei animal- iendly al e na i es. The campaign
is aimed a young lea ne s because PETA belie es ha child en a e mo e
ecep i e o new ideas and, he e o e, mo e likely o adop animal- iendly
language. The o ganiza ion ad oca es he adop ion o al e na i e idioms among
young indi iduals o os e a mo e compassiona e and espec ul socie y owa ds
animals (PETA 2018).
Since 2018, PETA has expanded he lis o al e na i e idioms. The “Comple e
lis o animal- iendly idioms” cu en ly con ains 166 exp essions, including 88
o iginal wo ds and ph ases and 88 al e na i es p oposed by PETA (PETA n.d.).
The o ganiza ion con inues i s campaign on i s o icial websi e and Twi e ,
in i ing he public o c ea e new animal- iendly idioms.
Be o e analyzing PETA’s animal- iendly exp essions, i is impo an o add ess
a e minological issue ega ding hei use o he e m “idiom”. In linguis ics,
S aipsniai / A icles 173
O Mice and Men: PETA’s Animal-F iendly
Idioms as a S a egy Agains Speciesism?
idioms a e de ined as “ ixed mul i-wo d exp essions ha concep ually encode
non-composi ional meaning” (Espinal, Ma eu 2019). In o he wo ds, idioms
a e ph ases ha unc ion as a single uni (Ay o 2020) o con ey a igu a i e
meaning ha canno be in e ed om he li e al meanings o he indi idual
wo ds. The e o e, i is wo h no ing ha no all en ies labeled as “idioms” by
PETA con o m o he s ic de ini ion o he e m. Fo example, single-wo d
me apho s such as badge , pa o , and dog igh on PETA’s lis a e no idioms in
he adi ional sense o he e m.
Howe e , Raymond Gibbs (2007) challenges he adi ional iew o idioms
as “bi s and pieces o ossilized language” (p. 702) and a gues ha he adi ional
app oach ails o accoun o he me apho ical hough p ocess o con empo a y
language speake s. Acco ding o Gibbs, s udying idioms p o ides a unique
oppo uni y o unde s and he ich and lexible na u e o na u al language and
human hough (Gibbs 2007: 721).
Ano he issue ha needs o be conside ed is he na u e o idioms. Acco ding
o John Ay o (2020), idioms a e cha ac e ized by seman ic opaqueness and
ixedness, meaning ha hei componen s a e ypically ixed, a leas o some
deg ee (Espinal, Ma eu, 2019), and di icul o subs i u e. Replacing keywo ds
in o iginal idioms aises doub s abou whe he PETA’s p oposed al e na i e
exp essions a e ue idioms o should be classi ied as quasi-idioms. Howe e ,
his s udy does no aim o de ine hei s a us, as i may be explo ed in u u e
esea ch. Fo con enience, his pape uses he e m “animal- iendly idioms”,
widely ecognized by he public amilia wi h he campaign and equen ly used
in he media.
While he easons behind PETA’s selec ion o 88 speciesis idioms a e no
clea , i is s ill impo an o c i ically examine he al e na i e exp essions and
hei po en ial impac on shaping a i udes and beha io s owa ds animals. Some
o hese exp essions explici ly p omo e iolen beha io owa ds animals o a e
disc imina o y, such as mo e han one way o skin a ca , like a chicken wi h i s head
cu o , o shoo ish in a ba el. O he s cas animals in nega i e conno a ions o
use he names o animals o desc ibe nega i e human ai s, o ins ance, chicken
ou , bull in a china ac o y, o s ubbo n as a mule. On he o he hand, idioms snail
mail o back he w ong ho se a e no inhe en ly disc imina o y. Howe e , i can be
a gued ha some idioms, such as hose men ioned abo e, may con ibu e o he
no maliza ion and pe pe ua ion o ce ain disc imina o y a i udes and beha io s.
The al e na i e exp essions p o ided by PETA use a ious linguis ic s a egies
o c ea e animal- iendly idioms. The mos popula s a egy is a subs i u ion,
whe e he o iginal wo d e e ing o an animal is eplaced wi h an animal-
iendly al e na i e. Fo ins ance, kill wo bi ds wi h one s one was eplaced wi h
eed wo bi ds wi h one scone, whe eas mad as a Ma ch ha e was eplaced wi h
OLENA FOMENKO
180 Ac a Linguis ica Li huanica LXXXVIII
STN – Smulewicz-Zucke G ego y R., Co nell D ucilla, F anklin
Julian H., Kend ick Hea he M., Mendie a Edua do, Linzey And ew,
Ca alie i Paola, P eece Rod, Ben on Ted, Thompson Michael J., Fox
Michael A., G uen Lo i, Acampo a Ralph R., Rollin Be na d, Slo e dijk
Pe e 2012: S ange s o Na u e: Animal Li es and Human E hics, Lanham: Lexing on
Books.
Wang Amy 2018: PETA wan s o change “an i-animal” sayings, bu he In e ne
hinks hey’ e eeding a ed ho se. – The Washing on Pos . A ailable a : h ps://
www.washing onpos .com/science/2018/12/05/pe a-wan s-change-an i-animal-
sayings-in e ne - hinks- hey e- eeding- ed-ho se/.
Apie peles i žmones: PETA gy ūnams
d augiškos idiomos kaip s a egija p ieš
ūšiškumą?
SANTRAUKA
Šiame y ime nag inėjamas o ganizacijos „People o he E hical T ea men o Animals“
(PETA, lie . „Žmonės už e išką elgesį su gy ūnais“) pasiūlymas pakeis i nusis o ėjusias
anglų kalbos idiomas, ku ios ska ina smu ą p ieš gy ūnus, gy ūnams d augiškomis al e -
na y omis. Išanaliza us 88 gy ūnams d augiškus žodžius i azes ling is inės i k i inės
disku so analizės me odu, y ime siek a į e in i kampanijos s ip iąsias i silpnąsias puses.
S aipsnyje kons a uojama, kad no s PETA siūlomos al e na y os, ikė ina, nepakeis gy ū-
nus disk iminuojančios kalbos dėl sa o di b inumo i kul ū inio a o ūkio, inicia y a u i
eigiamą po eikį aikomajai ling is ikai i š ie imui. Kampanija plečia sup a imą apie gy-
ūnus disk iminuojančią kalbą i agina žmones eng i su gy ūnais susijusių disk imina-
cinių posakių. Be o, PETA inicia y a kelia klausimą apie p ieš gy ūnus nuk eip os kalbos
a ojimą kaip nusis o ėjusią no mą i ska ina k i iškai mąs y i apie žodžiais pe duodamas
žinu es. No s ši kampanija gali nea neš i skubių pokyčių, ačiau ji u i po encialą paska in i
nedisk iminacinį kalbos a ojimą aikomosios kalbo y os s i yje, ypač a p besimokančio
jaunimo i žmonių, ku iems anglų kalba nė a gim oji.
Į eik a 2023 m. gegužės 4 d.
OLENA FOMENKO
Ta as She chenko Na ional Uni e si y o Kyi
60, Volodymy ska S .
01033, Uk aine, Kyi
[email protected]