Eduard Baltzer, "L'uomo al centro della natura", Leipzig 1872

This text presents a philosophical and ethical defense of vegetarianism grounded in a broader vision of the human being as inseparably embedded in nature. It argues that Christian dualism alienated humanity from the natural world, whereas ancient thought, revived through figures such as Spinoza, conceived spirit and matter as expressions of a single living whole. From this perspective, vegetarianism is not merely a dietary choice, but a moral, natural, social, economic, and aesthetic reform of human life. The author maintains that living according to nature leads to greater health, ethical refinement, social justice, and harmony between humanity and the cosmos. Vegetarianism thus appears as the foundation of a future civilization marked by beauty, reason, and a higher form of culture.