"The Voyages of Doctor Dolittle" by Hugh Lofting was first published in 1923 and we are lucky enough to have a beautiful edition from the 1933 reprint. Some elements of Lofting's books are not acceptable to today's readers and I certainly do not condone the use of racist language or stereotypes. However, some of the viewpoints expressed about animals and their feelings and characters could be thought of as quite forward-thinking. Certainly there is anthropomorphism but there is also an empathy for the animals. For example, in this story, the Doctor describes his thoughts about keeping lions and tigers in zoos to his apprentice Tommy Stubbins:
' "If I had my way, Stubbins, there wouldn't be a single lion or tiger in captivity anywhere in the world. They never take to it. They're never happy. They never settle down. They are always thinking of the big countries they have left behind. You can see it in their eyes, dreaming - dreaming always of the great open spaces where they were born; dreaming of the deep, dark jungles where their mothers first taught them how to scent and track the deer. And what are they given in exchange for all this?" asked the Doctor, stopping in his walk and growing all red and angry - "What are they given in exchange for the glory of an African sunrise, for the twilight breeze whispering through the palm, for the green shade of the matted, tangled vines, for the cool, big-starred nights of the desert, for the patter of the waterfall after a hard day's hunt? What, I ask you, are they given in exchange for these? Why, a bare cage with iron bars; an ugly piece of dead meat thrust in to them once a day; and a crowd of fools to come and stare at them with open mouths! - No, Stubbins. Lions and tigers, the Big Hunters, should never, never be seen in zoos." '