문학과 지성사

It all started with a dog.
Those cute little starry-eyed, four-legged buggers?
They can actually turn your life 180 degrees.

Dr. Lee Wonyeong took the leap from the world of philosophy to the life of a veterinarian. His unique experience has allowed him to write more in-depth about what it means to live with animal companions. As a student of philosophy, he had the life-changing experience of adopting his dog, Bokdol. Though he didn't think much of it at first as it happened purely by chance, over the decade of living side-by-side with Bokdol allowed Lee to form a unique connection with him, ponder more deeply about coexisting with nonhuman animals.

With the help of five keywords, “encounter,” “understanding,” “connection,” “union,” and “coexisting,” Animal-lover Becomes a Philosopher narrates the author’s real-life episodes and walks us through the various situations and problems one might encounter while living with an animal companion.

While the preceding books on animal companions have tended to be in the form of guidebooks that inform the readers of the basic facts and troubleshooting skills necessary to live with specific kinds of animal companions, Animal-lover Becomes a Philosopher focuses on discussing the common philosophical issues that arise from co-living with nonhuman animals: for example, how can we ethically approach our co-living situations? What are some of the things that we should mentally and physically prepare before living with our animal companions? What are the reasons that they hold such a special meaning for us? What kind of efforts are required to build a healthy relationship with them? What are the limitations of the interspecies connection? Through these critical questions, the book offers an opportunity to approach the coexistence with animal companions in more realistic and concrete ways.