Animals are a lower life form and have no understanding.
Explanation:
At the beginning of the story Rainsford is talking to his friend Whitney who is talking about how a successful hunt is satisfactory to the hunter and how the animal itself has a huge share in that satisfaction. According to Whitney, hunting is great for the hunter, but terrible for the animal being hunted.
Rainsford does not agree with his friend and asks what matters that hunting is terrible for animals? who cares what animals feel? At this point, Whitney asserts that animals care what they feel. Rainsford does not agree again, stating that animals do not have the ability to understand what is happening, so Whitney concludes the conversation by stating that animals "understand one thing - the fear of pain and the fear of death."
