Blurring Boundaries Between Animal and Human: Animalhuman Rights in "Juan Darien" by Horacio Quiroga (Critical Essay)

THE title of this study suggests multiple questions, ontological as well as moral and ethical. Before blurring any boundaries between what has historically and scientifically been a neat, dyadic relationship, I must explore exactly what are the differences between human beings and animals, and at what moments do each of the entities cross over or blend, becoming hybrid beings possessing shared qualities. And moreover, does the manner in which human beings define themselves have a direct relation to the extension of rights? How do we define ourselves, if not in direct comparison to something we are not? Theorists and philosophers alike from Descartes to Derrida have problematized this 'question of the animal' to such degrees that any discussion here would not even begin to scratch the surface of this most storied of topics. In short, by insisting on defining ourselves in terms of what we are not, we have installed a world of dichotomous beings and non-beings, humans and animals, subjects and objects, selves and Others who constantly battle for that coveted 50-yard line seat at the center of all things intellectual: who comes first? Nature or culture? Center or periphery?