The Anti-vivisection movement was an
ethical and political protestation which emerged in Europe, Britain and the
United States in the nineteenth century against Vivisection. It was basically
concerned with protecting animals from harmful experimentation that were held
at that time. Vivisection is an experiment done on the living being, for the
medical and research purposes. The experiment does not contains precision,
there is always fear of errors. The scientists who did vivisection believed it
as a token of welfare to the mankind. On the other hand, the supporters of the
animal rights welfare lamented and stood against the hideous experiments that
were being carried out. The American Anti-Vivisection Society (AAVS) kept on
striving for the protection of animals by providing public awareness,
educating, and by giving ideas about changing research methodologies. Mark
Twain, was a major supporter of the American Anti- Vivisection society. He
stood firmly against the cruelty done to animals and in support to it he wrote stories
like “A Dog’s Tale”.
Mark Twain’s Story “A Dog’s Tale” is a
tale that is told by a dog. The tale reveals the faithful nature of animals or
pets like dogs and the unfaithful and irrational nature of human beings who do
not care for anyone other than themselves. They just think selfishly about
their material success and fame. The master of the dog in the story similar
like the scientists who performed vivisection believed it as a kind of welfare
they are serving to humanity in the name of inhumane acts of cruelty on
animals. The master while talking about the vivisection with his colleagues for
experimenting optics and whether a certain injury to the brain would introduce
blindness or not, said “it’s far above
instinct; it’s REASON, and many a man, privileged to be saved and go with you
and me to a better world by right of its possession, has less of it that this
quadruped that’s foreordained to perish”.
Mark Twain being the staunch supporter
of antivivisection drew a painful picture of the aftereffects of the
vivisection experimented by the master on his pets puppy. “One day those men came again, and said, now for the test, and they took
the puppy to the laboratory, and I limped three-leggedly along, too, feeling
proud, for any attention shown to the puppy was a pleasure to me, of course.
They discussed and experimented, and then suddenly the puppy shrieked, and they
set him on the floor, and he went staggering around, with his head all bloody…”Mark
Twain lamented the vivisection in this story by narrating the story through a
dog’s perspective making it more painful to read it and make the world overlook
their decision of carrying out vivisection. The story clearly expresses the
nobility of the dogs and the cruel nature of humans, as in the story the master
after successfully experimenting on the puppy, clapped his hands and shouted:
"There,
I've won—confess it! He's as blind as a bat!"
And
they all said:
"It's
so—you've proved your theory, and suffering humanity owes you a great debt from
henceforth," and they crowded around him, and wrung his hand cordially and
thankfully, and praised him.Twain
represents the ironical comment on humanity and especially the supporters of
vivisection that how much blinded they were by their material fame and
appraisal that no one among them was able to realise the suffering they were
causing to the humanity in the name of humanities well-being. Moving on in the
story, we see that how painfully the puppy gets blind and finally dies after
being experimented. The obedience of dog to his master and mother is pretty
evident throughout the story.
The dog on one hand through his life
never forget the lessons taught by her mother and on the other the humans like
the master of the dog, forgot the lessons of humanity taught him in Church.
Mark Twain throughout the story with the assistance of satire and irony
disapproves and shows his resentment towards the vivisection that was prevalent
in his society.
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