Theories of Moral Status PDF

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Professor Banes-Berceli - Biomedicine and Disease Winter 2017 semester - lecture 3 notes on the theories of moral status ...

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Biomedicine and Disease (BIO 499) - Lecture 3 Notes - Medical Ethics - Theories of Moral Status

5 Theories: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Human properties Cognitive properties Moral agency Sentience Relationships

Theory based on human properties: • All humans have status and only humans have it • Theory states human life begins at fertilization and once life begins all humans have full moral rights and status ◦ Same as adult human beings Theory based on cognitive properties: • Cognition = awareness -- perception, memory, understanding, thinking • Self awareness (awareness of time -- past and future) • Freedom to act and capacity to engage in purposeful actions • • •

Ability to give and appreciate reasons for acting Capacity to communicate with language ◦ Big deal bc not all groups can communicate Rationality and high order volition

Theory based on moral agency: • Moral status derived from the capacity to act as a moral agent • 2 conditions need to be met: ◦ Individual capable of making moral judgments about right and wrong actions of theirs ◦

Individual has motives that can be judged morally

Theory based on sentience: • Sentience = consciousness in the form of feeling ◦ Especially capacity to feel pain and pleasure • Humans and non animals have properties that aren't cognitive or moral properties but should count towards moral status •

Central line of argument = pain is evil and bad, pleasure is good ◦ To cause pain to any entity is to harm it and this is wrong

Theory based on relationships: • Relationships between parties accounts for moral status •

◦ Primarily relationships that estblish roles and obligations Example: parent-child, doctor-patient ◦ Have obligations that are specific to the roles...