French Literature Reviews - 2026
Vinciane Despret and Raphaël Larrère (eds.), Animals: Two or Three Things We Know About Them.
Philosophy, Anthropology and Ideas
Vinciane Despret, Raphaël Larrère (eds.), Animals: Two or Three Things We Know About Them, Paris: Hermann, coll. "Colloque de Cerisy" 2014
ISBN 9782705688561
312 p.
Price 23 €
Subscription price (20 €) until publication date see publisher's website
Publisher's overview:
This book, originating from a conference held in July 2010 at the International Cultural Center of Cerisy, brings together specialists from a wide variety of disciplines who share a common interest in animals. Some study them in the wild or in laboratories, while others conduct research among hunters, breeders, caretakers, activists, or animal welfare advocates. Across all these accounts, it becomes clear that animals matter deeply to each of the authors—whether they live with them, hunt them, protect them, or study them as objects of knowledge. The contributors examine how we coexist with animals today and the forms of "living together" that we must invent. What do we actually know about these animals? What can we imagine beyond our ignorance? Above all: how does what we know about them transform our way of being with them?
Biographies of the authors:
Vinciane Despret is a philosopher and teaches at the University of Liège. She is the author of numerous works exploring the knowledge produced around and with animals. She served as the scientific curator for the exhibition Beasts and Men at La Grande Halle de la Villette in 2007–2008.
Raphaël Larrère is an agricultural engineer, sociologist, and former research director at INRA. His publications focus on human uses and perceptions of nature, environmental ethics, and the moral dimensions of human-animal relations. He directs the "Sciences en questions" series for Quæ publishing.
With contributions by: Donna Haraway, Catherine Larrère, Eric Baratay, Jocelyne Porcher, Joëlle Hofmans, Jérôme Michalon, Dalila Bovet, Alain Boissy, Xavier Boivin, George Chapouthier, Raphaël Larrère, André Micoud, Isabelle Mauz, Céline Granjou, Coralie Mounet, George Gonzalez, Marie-Line Monblanc, Eric Bideau, Lucienne Strivay, and Catherine Mougenot.
The volume stems from a scholarly gathering held in July 2010 at the International Cultural Center of Cerisy, bringing together specialists from a wide variety of disciplines who share a common interest in animals. By combining contributions from field researchers, laboratory scientists, and scholars studying human practices like hunting, breeding, and activism, the collection engages with discussions surrounding human-animal relations. Readers interested in interdisciplinary approaches to coexistence and the evolving ways we understand animals may find it relevant.
The texts gathered by Vinciane Despret and Raphaël Larrère examine how scientific inquiry, daily practice, and ethical reflection intersect in our engagement with other species. Through accounts from specialists across multiple disciplines, the work addresses what we currently understand about animals, the limits of our knowledge, and how these insights reshape our ways of living alongside them. The diverse perspectives highlight the multifaceted roles animals occupy in human society as objects of study, companions, and subjects of moral concern.