I am a PhD student in history researching Victorian vegetarians and their ideas. Of particular interest to me is the movement’s resurgence, and the proliferation of vegetarian literature, which occurred during the ‘late Victorian revolt’ c. 1880-1900. What excites me is how vegetarian intellectuals in this period discussed topics including, but not limited to: evolutionary thought and comparative anatomy, the ethics of ‘flesh-eating’, animal rights, the environment and land reform. Key figures in my work include Anna Kingsford, Henry Salt, Francis Newman, Arnold Hills and Edward Carpenter.
My research methods are informed by my experience as an MPhil student in political thought and intellectual history. Therefore, the use of archival research, the interpretation of texts, and an elaboration of their context are key to my project. This approach allows me to illustrate the sense of modernity with which many late Victorian vegetarians wrote. Moreover, I will demonstrate how their ideas are relevant to problems we face today, for example in agriculture and food security.
Bodies, Ethics, and the Environment: Vegetarian Thought in Britain, c. 1880-1900
PGR Supervisors: Peter Yeandle and Josh Milburn