Environmental Ethics

Donald VanDeVeer critiques and examines Peter Singer’s book “Animal Liberation”. In this book, Peter Singer presents a tempting argument in favor of the view that humans have some duties toward animals. The reconstruction of this argument are the following points: All or virtually all humans beings are sentient creatures, many animals are sentient creatures, moral agents have a duty to refrain causing suffering to sentient creatures, moral agents have a duty to refrain from causing suffering to humans and animals, the interests of all sentient creatures must be given equal consideration, the imposition of suffering on animals would have to be justified by grounds of the same moral weight as those which would  be necessary to justify the imposition of suffering on humans.  Peter Singer regarded us humans as spiciest, because we allow the interests of our own species to override the greater interests of members of other species. VanDeVeer breaks down the following principles Ra...

Tom Regan states the animal movement is committed to the following goals, the total abolition of the use of animals in science, the total dissolution of commercial animal agriculture, and the total dissolution of commercial animal agriculture. Regan states the fundamental wrong is that we have a system in place that allows for us to view animals as our resources, here for us to be eaten, surgically manipulated, or killed sport sport or money. He believes that the idea of animal rights has reason, and not just emotion. He brings up the viewpoint that as humans we believe we owe nothing to animals, yet we can do wrong acts that involve animals, so we have duties regarding them, though none to them. Regan state that we cannot rationally ignore or dismiss the moral relevance of the pain animals feel. The view that animals don’t feel anything and that only human pain is morally relevant is called contractarianism. As humans we must recognize that we have some duties towards animals, as we ...

Peter Singer introduces his argument with the notion that we out to extend to other species the basic principle of equality that most of us recognize should be extended to all members of own species. The basic principle of equality Singer focuses on is the equality of consideration. He states that equal consideration for different beings may lead to different treatment and different rights. He makes a distinction that the principle of equality amongst human beings is not based on actual equality amongst humans, but instead a notion of how we should treat humans. Peter believes that possessing a higher degree of intelligence does not entitle humans to use another being for his or her ends. Instead, the capacity for suffering is a vital characteristic that gives a being the right to equal consideration. He states that if a being suffers, there is no moral justification to not take that suffering into consideration. Singer then draws a line in his argument by stating, if  a being is ...

Kenneth Goodpaster leads us through many principles and perceptions of different philosophers to tackle the overall question, “ to whom principles of morality apply?” In order to begin to develop an answer for this question, we must first understand the framework of moral consideration, and then proceed to the application of this framework. Goodpaster presents to us distinct viewpoints on the sorts of entities that can and should receive moral consideration. He believes that neither rationality nor the capacity to experience pleasure and pain are necessary conditions on moral considerability. Instead, the simple act of being alive, for Goodpaster is a plausible criterion in terms of moral consideration. He believes that the universe of moral consideration is more complex that just individual persons and their joys ad sorrows. Goodpaster begins to draw the distinction between rights and considerability. He believes that the notion of rights are more specific that those of considerbaili...

Holmes Rolston talks about the separate duties that humans and organisms owe to the ecosystem through distinct lenses. He states that the apparent harmony in ecosystems is superficial. Like business, politics, and sports ecosystems thrive on competition. He talks about how environmental necessity involves conflict, selection pressure, niche fittedness, environmental support, etc. These section pressures will routinely drive adaptation and counter adaptation; therefor the ecosystem is forcing a check on competitions by forced cooperation.   He believes us humans need to see that, an ecosystem has no centeredness at all, and we ought to simply value organisms for their evolutionary journey and purpose. The members of the biotic community have no shared needs; each species is individualistic in the sense that they are focused on the needs of their own survival.   He further explains how an ecosystem is far from being a satisfactory community, instead it is rath...

J. Baird Callicott uses Leopolds land ethic in his argument, but then takes us beyond those points.  Callicott address how the land ethic might be related to more familiar modern concerns, and how it can be applied to contemporary environmental concerns. His main focus is the serious and disturbing theoretical and practical challenge to the land ethic raised by professional philosophers, regarding Eco fascism. He speaks about the evolutionary origins of ethics, using Darwin’s viewpoints. Ethics demands that moral agents selflessly consider other interests in addition to their own. But history indicates the opposite; our remote ancestors were more brutal and ruthless than we are. He states that the existence of ethics presents a problem for Darwin’s attempt to show how all things human can be understood as gradually evolved by natural selection. The problem Darwin is faced with that the social contract theory was not useful to Darwin because they ground ethic...

Taylor goes in this paper touches on various points to formulate his argument on the ethics of respect of nature. He states that adopting the attitude of having respect for nature should be an ultimate moral attitude. His paper focuses on a “life centered view” or bio centric view of nature, and how this contrast with anthropocentric views and holistic views. He refers to us having this moral obligation that are owed to wild plants, animals, and other living beings as members of the earths biotic community. He assigns us humans a sense of responsibility; we must protect and promote their good for their sake. This obligations she states, ties into the recognition of their inherent worth. He goes on to break down what “the good of a being” means and the concept of their intrinsic worth. What makes an entity good is “what does it good”, therefore what enhances its life and well being. As humans we have the capabilities to hinder or help them in the realization of this good. We are the on...

Arne Naess gives us a different approach of how we look at ourselves in the ecological world. In the passage he lays out six points that explain his argument in terms of self-realization what that means, and its relation to the land. He breaks down the term “ego” and how we emphasize the self. He talks about how we confuse our self with the narrow ego, and how we are so much more than that. The narrow ego according to Naess is when we try to identify “I” when pointing to our body, but we cannot substitute “my body” for “I”. You cannot identify yourself or even your ego with your body. When we come to terms with self-realization, there is a broadening and deepening of self. This process leads us to being happy and realizing a deeper meaning of life. However self realization isn’t a solo process, this is hindered if the self-realization of others with whom we identify is hindered. He introduces the concept of the ecological self; the ecological self of a person is that...

Leopold challenges us to rethink our ethical decisions, values, and role in the  biotic community. He  opens up by telling us the story on how Odysseus when returning from war in Troy, had hung his slave girls because he suspected them of misbehavior during his absence. This idea of disposal of property is exactly how we look at the land, and the ecological community around us. Leopold discusses how there are many ethics that explain the individual’s relations to things. Such as the Golden Rule which ties the individual to society and democracy, which integrates social organization to the individual. However, he shines the spotlight on how there ha snot been an ethic that is centralize don man’s relation to the land, animals, or plants. This is because as humans we view the land as an economic resource and a sour property. Which entails privileges, but leaving no obligations. Society however has not realized or taken into account that the despoliation of land is wrong. He tal...