When Elephants Weep

The Emotional Lives of Animals

By: Jeffrey Masson, Susan McCarthy

Narrated by: David Ackroyd

In the late 19th century, Charles Darwin was sure that humans and animals showed emotion through remarkably similar behaviors, noting, "The Indian elephant is said sometimes to weep." For over 100 years, animal lovers have known that their dogs, cats, and other pets have complex emotional lives. When Elephants Weep is the first book since Darwin's to thoroughly and effectively explore the full range of emotions throughout the animal kingdom.

Scholar and psychoanalyst Masson, with the help of Susan McCarthy, presents scientific evidence, fascinating anecdotes, and illuminating insights that offer powerful proof of the existence of animal emotion. When Elephants Weep draws upon the illuminating experiences of animal trainers and pet owners to create riveting and revolutionary stories that will permanently change and enrich the way we look at animals.

©1995 Jeffrey Moussaief Masson (P)1995 Phoenix Books, Inc.

Many interesting theories about animal behavior

There were many anecdotes of interest in this book. I do think there are biased views, particularly on the use of animals and research and the way those animals are treated. I am not a research research; however, I have worked with research animals as the veterinarian who oversees their care and I have seen more animal abuse in the pet world than ever in a research environment. There are strict protocols for how the animals are housed and treated, especially managing pain or discomfort. There are far more legal requirements for doing animal research than owning a pet. I have worked in veterinary practice as well and seen far more cruelty that people have inflicted upon their own pets versus what I experienced in research facilities. I have my own biases, but at least they’re based on firsthand experience.

Moderate

The book reads like a journal. It is not well written and lacks the the consistency from a “scholarly” perspective

Great perspective, but one thing stood out...

This audio is not identical to text in the book and skips over many portions.

Animal Rights

Not as objective as I expected and would have liked. I am an animal lover and a dog owner but this book was way too biased and sentimental for me.

Beautiful book

Animals and all sentient beings deserve to live their life in peace. Human beings are not in anyway superior to any other being. In fact humans have a very long way to go to come close to the evolutionary status of animals.