Differences
This shows you the differences between two versions of the page.
| Both sides previous revisionPrevious revisionNext revision | Previous revision | ||
| utsfl:classroom:seminars:pba305y [2018/11/15 14:54] – mmccann | utsfl:classroom:seminars:pba305y [2024/08/08 23:57] (current) – [Functionalism vs. human equality] mmccann | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
| ====== PBA305H: Peter Singer: Speciesism and Functionalism ====== | ====== PBA305H: Peter Singer: Speciesism and Functionalism ====== | ||
| + | |||
| + | < | ||
| + | |||
| There are four main ways in which abortion advocates will argue: | There are four main ways in which abortion advocates will argue: | ||
| - Abortion can be justifiable due to the circumstances of a crisis pregnancy | - Abortion can be justifiable due to the circumstances of a crisis pregnancy | ||
| Line 13: | Line 16: | ||
| He argues that the moral question for abortion should be based on a utilitarian calculation which compares the preferences of a woman against the preferences of the fetus -- and does not consider a fetus or newborn of having many, if any, serious interests.(([[wp> | He argues that the moral question for abortion should be based on a utilitarian calculation which compares the preferences of a woman against the preferences of the fetus -- and does not consider a fetus or newborn of having many, if any, serious interests.(([[wp> | ||
| - | |||
| - | ===== Background ===== | ||
| - | ==== Preference Utilitarianism ==== | ||
| - | FIXME definitions!! | ||
| ===== Against Speciesism and the Sanctity of Human Life ===== | ===== Against Speciesism and the Sanctity of Human Life ===== | ||
| Line 68: | Line 67: | ||
| > the fact that a being is a human being, in the sense of a member of the species Homo sapiens, is not relevant to the wrongness of killing it; it is, rather, characteristics like rationality, | > the fact that a being is a human being, in the sense of a member of the species Homo sapiens, is not relevant to the wrongness of killing it; it is, rather, characteristics like rationality, | ||
| + | * level of development in SLED => functionalism | ||
| * What does normal mean? What does consciousness mean? We're dealing with arbitrary cut off points... | * What does normal mean? What does consciousness mean? We're dealing with arbitrary cut off points... | ||
| * If Singer is correct that rationality and self-consciousness define the morally significant person, then why shouldn’t greater rationality make you more of a person? | * If Singer is correct that rationality and self-consciousness define the morally significant person, then why shouldn’t greater rationality make you more of a person? | ||
| - | + | * then, why that point, why that developmental milestones? | |
| - | === Utilitarian ethic === | + | * Why should we go with your definition and not mine? It's arbitrary |
| - | FIXME | + | |
| - | + | ||
| - | Preference Utilitarianism | + | |
| === Infanticide: | === Infanticide: | ||
| - | ===== Responses ===== | + | Objections: |
| - | ==== Speciesism ==== | + | * “When we kill a newborn, there is no person whose life has begun. When I think of myself as the person I am now, I realize that I did not come into existence until sometime after my birth.”17 |
| + | * As Scott Rae and Paul Cox point out, however, “If I do not exist until sometime after my birth, in what sense is the birth mine? The only way for ‘my birth’ to be more than a linguistic convention is to admit that ‘I’ existed before I was born, or at least at the time of my birth.” | ||
| - | FIXME | + | ===== Pro-life Responses ===== |
| + | ==== Speciesism? ==== | ||
| - | * First, we won't want to get in a worldview argument if we don't have to -- the animal rights question doesn' | + | * Kianna, Oriyana etc. stories: driving. Have to swerve to hit either a newborn baby human, or an adult cow / adult pig? |
| + | * BUT we don't want to get in a worldview argument if we don't have to -- the animal rights question doesn' | ||
| * EHP not OHP | * EHP not OHP | ||
| + | FIXME discussions about other types of entities that may/may not deserve moral consideration–aliens, | ||
| + | * FIXME funny video from The Good Place re: treatment of AI https:// | ||
| < | < | ||
| {{: | {{: | ||
| "After talking to a Ryerson student about the science of when life begins, she agreed with me that pre-born human beings also deserve human rights. Then she asked, 'What about animal rights?' | "After talking to a Ryerson student about the science of when life begins, she agreed with me that pre-born human beings also deserve human rights. Then she asked, 'What about animal rights?' | ||
| + | |||
| + | |||
| + | * Stephanie Gray example: giving rights to whales --> give rights to only the strongest, smartest whales? Or to the entire species? We wouldn' | ||
| </ | </ | ||
| + | ==== Utilitarianism? | ||
| + | |||
| + | FIXME definitions. Preference utilitarianism | ||
| * But, the utilitarian ethic is antithetical to the pro-life perspective and its adequacy needs a response (e.g. the problem of gang-rape, if we're similarly measuring overall pleasure against overall pain) | * But, the utilitarian ethic is antithetical to the pro-life perspective and its adequacy needs a response (e.g. the problem of gang-rape, if we're similarly measuring overall pleasure against overall pain) | ||
| + | * Or Kianna' | ||
| + | * Get Matthew' | ||
| - | === Counterintuitive === | + | ==== Counterintuitive: protecting the vulnerable ==== |
| - | * Apply it to people that we know: Peter Singer could not apply his own worldview to his mother; he knows on a deeper, intuitive level that his worldview doesn' | + | * His claims are counter-intuitive. Vulnerable |
| - | * Most people reject infanticide | + | * Treatment of born children |
| - | + | * Most people reject infanticide | |
| - | === Functionalism vs. human essentialism === | + | * Child abuse until self-awareness would be permissible |
| + | * He thinks the killing of newborns should be limited to those who are severely disabled… | ||
| + | * Person in a temporary coma | ||
| + | * Can we kill them? | ||
| + | * FIXME involuntary euthanasia (does this belong here?) | ||
| + | * Maria --> discussion at UWO, at AAP, etc. | ||
| + | * Peter Singer could not apply his own worldview to his mother; he knows on a deeper, intuitive level that his worldview doesn' | ||
| + | * FIXME quote | ||
| + | ==== Functionalism vs. human essentialism | ||
| * Inherent capacities (inherent rational nature) vs. current capacities | * Inherent capacities (inherent rational nature) vs. current capacities | ||
| - | + | * ex. Embryo vs. amoeba | |
| - | === Functionalism vs. human equality === | + | * (Or Maaike: "what makes a dog a dog?") |
| + | ==== Functionalism vs. human equality | ||
| * Most people believe that all born humans are equal. What makes them equal? | * Most people believe that all born humans are equal. What makes them equal? | ||
| * Steve Wagner: | * Steve Wagner: | ||
| Line 107: | Line 126: | ||
| * Functionalism --> Ableism | * Functionalism --> Ableism | ||
| * Kianna' | * Kianna' | ||
| - | ===== Rough Notes ===== | + | * Functionalism --> ageism |
| + | |||
| + | Sources: | ||
| + | * Animal Liberation excerpt from Gensler' | ||
| + | * http:// | ||
| + | * https:// | ||
| + | |||
| + | FIXME good overview of Singer' | ||
| + | ===== Old Notes ===== | ||
| + | FIXME Refactor this in terms of two core components to the argument: (1) speciesism, (2) personhood (self-awareness, | ||
| + | FIXME David Boonin' | ||
| + | |||
| + | ==== Rough Notes ==== | ||
| FIXME mine Klusendorf' | FIXME mine Klusendorf' | ||
| Line 118: | Line 149: | ||
| * “Why Libertarians Should be Pro-Choice Regarding Abortion, | * “Why Libertarians Should be Pro-Choice Regarding Abortion, | ||
| * Michael Tooley? | * Michael Tooley? | ||
| - | |||
| - | FIXME | ||
| - | * then, why that point, why that developmental milestones? | ||
| - | * Why should we go with your definition and not mine? It's arbitrary | ||
| - | * level of development in SLED => functionalism | ||
| - | * Apply it to people that we know: Peter Singer could not apply his own worldview to his mother; he knows on a deeper, intuitive level that his worldview doesn' | ||
| - | * Child abuse until self-awareness would be permissible | ||
| - | * He thinks the killing of newborns should be limited to those who are severely disabled... that's inconsistent with his worldview -- who cares if you kill healthy newborns? | ||
| - | |||
| - | * his claims are counterintuitive | ||
| - | |||
| - | Sources: | ||
| - | * Animal Liberation excerpt from Gensler' | ||
| - | * http:// | ||
| - | * https:// | ||
| - | |||
| - | |||
| - | Objections: | ||
| - | * According to Singer, the answer is no. “When we kill a newborn, there is no person whose life has begun. When I think of myself as the person I am now, I realize that I did not come into existence until sometime after my birth.”17 As Scott Rae and Paul Cox point out, however, “If I do not exist until sometime after my birth, in what sense is the birth mine? The only way for ‘my birth’ to be more than a linguistic convention is to admit that ‘I’ existed before I was born, or at least at the time of my birth.” | ||
| - | |||
| - | ===== Old Notes ===== | ||
| - | FIXME Refactor this in terms of two core components to the argument: (1) speciesism, (2) personhood (self-awareness, | ||
| - | FIXME David Boonin' | ||