Life Without Degrees of Moral Status Format: Hardback

Most people believe that animals matter morally, but human beings matter significantly more than animals. This belief, which is supported by important intuitions, fundamentally shapes our lives. It places us at the center of the moral universe, and it explains why we put animals in cages, conduct pain-inducing experiments on them, and eat them for dinner. However, the belief that there are degrees of moral status also raises the possibility that robots and genetically enhanced human beings could become significantly more important than the rest of us, in which case, they might be justified in putting us in cages, experimenting on us, and eating us for dinner. Despite the importance of these issues, there have been no systematic assessments of whether, in fact, there are degrees of moral status: Are some individuals more important morally than others? The goal of this book is to answer this vital question.

David S. Wendler is a philosopher trained in philosophy of science, and metaphysics and epistemology. He has worked in bioethics for 25 years and is currently a tenured senior investigator and head of research ethics in the Department of Bioethics at the US National Institutes of Health.