Animal Cruelty

The terrible barbarism of animal cruelty is explored through the story of Patrasche. Patrasche is a good and loyal dog who does not ever do a single bad thing in his entire life. However, he is treated monstrously by his original owner, who abuses him almost to the point of no return.

Patrasche is bred to labor in the harness and pull carts, so he is treated more like an object than a living creature, and his status as property allows his owner to get away with heinous cruelty with no consequence. The narrator describes the way in which work dogs are treated: “Happily for Patrasche—or unhappily—he was very strong: he came of an iron race, long born and bred to such cruel travail; so that he did not die, but managed to drag on a wretched existence under the brutal burdens, the...