Interspecies Freedom : Toward a Rethinking of Human-Animal Relations

This dissertation interrogates anthropocentric conceptions of freedom and develops an account of interspecies freedom as a relational condition enabling humans and other animals to flourish without domination. Freedom is traditionally conceived as an exclusively human concept, grounded in hierarchical structures that legitimise the oppression of other animals. Drawing on critical animal studies, ecofeminism, and intersectional theory, this study problematises these assumptions and argues that the domination and exploitation of other animals is a form of unfreedom that constitutes a systemic form of oppression embedded in social, economic, and epistemic structures. Methodologically, the research combines normative political theory with grounded approaches, integrating visual testimonies of animal oppression and semi-structured interviews with animal advocates to situate conceptual analysis in lived realities. Three principal claims are advanced: first, dominant accounts of liberty are historically constructed through exclusion and hierarchy; second, animal oppression is structural and interlinked with other forms of domination; and third, interspecies freedom should be understood as a non-dominating, relational condition cultivated through recognition, interdependence, and the expansion of agency. By rethinkingfreedom beyond the human, this dissertation contributes to political theory and multispecies justice, offering a normative framework for transforming human–animal relations toward more inclusive and emancipatory futures.