PP224 Lecture Notes - Anthropocentrism, Deep Ecology, Sentience
Document Summary
Speciesism: the view that the values or interests of one species have greater weight than those of other species. Racism: the view that being a member of a privileged race is necessary and sufficient for moral standing; and. Sexism: the view that being a member of a privileged gender is necessary and sufficient for moral standing. Mark sagoff"s central claim is that we are mistaken to focus on animal welfare because this position is too individualist. That is, it sees individual animals as the focus of our moral attention, whereas the focus for real environmentalists should be groups of animals or species for instance. Biocentrism: the view that living things as such can benefit from and be harmed by humans actions and that this fact places moral constraints on how we are permitted to treat them. The thing can institute legal action at its behest. Legal relief must be aimed at benefiting the thing.
