Abstract

In the 1904 article “Some Historical Aspects of Vegetarianism,” Yale biochemist Lafayette Mendel pointed out the neglect of moral arguments in contemporary discussions. Critics of vegetarianism were especially inclined to ignore its status as an ethical movement dating from ancient times, Mendel noted. But the longer view made it clear that “vegetarianism involves something more than a mere dietetic program” for personal health and physical purity. ¹