The well-known book by Peter Singer The Liberation of Animals has not only inspired a series of texts defending the rights and interests of animals, but has also provoked a discussion about what humanity is, what meaning can our belonging to the human kind have for us, and whether Singer’ critique of the “human prejudice” is justified. The paper considers two important defenders of “human prejudice”, B. A. O. Williams and C. Diamond, who both claim the concept of human being to be a basic ethical concept. In the first part, we will present Williams’s argument that solidarity and identity with one’s species doesn’t have the structure of a blameworthy privilege similar to sexism and racism. In the second part, we will proceed to Diamond’s conception of human being that is founded in relations and responses towards the other. Just as our treatment of a human being depends on whether we see this person as our fellow, so our treatment of an animal depends on how we see it. In the last part, we will consider Diamond’s illustration of how it is possible to change our perception of an animal and thus to change our treatment of it., Kamila Pacovská., and Obsahuje poznámky a bibliografii
Práce shrnuje vybrané současné postoje ke studiu morálního usuzování. Studie uvádí určitá klíčová filosofická východiska morálního usuzování do souvislosti s některými psychologickými koncepcemi, a to tak, že kriticky polemizuje s filosofickými východisky (Kant, Mill, Bentham, Rawl, Arendtová aj.), která tyto psychologické studie výslovně tematicky či la- tentně předpokládají. Práce podporuje měření morálního usuzování a pokusy o vypracování metod, které se touto oblastí zabývají. Doporučuje domácí validizační studie současných často užívaných nástrojů na měření morálního usuzování, především Defining Issues Test a Moral Judgment Test., This paper summarizes selected current attitudes towards the study of moral reasoning. The study refers certain key philosophical bases of moral reasoning in connection/regard to psychological concepts. The authors critically challenge the philosophical background (Kant, Mill, Bentham, Rawls, Arendt, etc.) that is either specifically expressed or covertly assumed. The study argues for the measurement of moral reasoning and methodological approaches concerning this research area. The authors recommend conducting a validation study of frequently used methods for measuring moral reasoning, especially Defining Issues Test and the Moral Judgment Test., David Krámský, Marek Preiss., and Obsahuje bibliografii a bibliografické odkazy
The concept of personal identity has recently come to play an increasingly important role in bioethical discussion concerning the beginning and end of human life. This study does not aim to represent the whole range of applications of theories of personal identity to bioethics. It focuses only on the beginning of human life, namely on the question of the moral acceptability of abortion. The author begins by describing an argument rejecting the acceptability of abortions which has been advanced by P. Lee, and it is shown that the validity of this argument depends on a certain conception of personal identity. Then the author briefly defines the psychological approach to personal identity, and he points to its weaknesses. There follows a discussion of the theory of animalism which claims that our persistence in time does not comprise any psychological factors. The conclusion of the article deals with various theories of moral status and indicates the inadequacy of functional criteria in accounting for the moral point of view. The article finishes by stating that the moral status of human beings should be founded on the concept of human dignity. If the considerations in the study have been set out correctly then they justify the following conclusion: abortions are morally unacceptable., David Černý., and Obsahuje poznámky a bibliografii
Much of the recent debate over the moral permissibility of abortion focuses on the question of whether the foetus is or is not a person, i.e. the only entity endowed with moral rights including the right to life. The article traces this line of thought in several key figures in the debate (Thomson, Tooley, Warren and Brody). However, I consider this way of argumentation as both inappropriate and misleading; in the second half of the article I offer arguments against using the concept of person in this debate., Jakub Jirsa., and Obsahuje poznámky a bibliografii