An Alternative to the Orthodoxy in Animal Ethics? Limits and Merits of the Wittgensteinian Critique of Moral Individualism.

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  • Author(s): Monsó S;Monsó S; Grimm H; Grimm H
  • Source:
    Animals : an open access journal from MDPI [Animals (Basel)] 2019 Dec 01; Vol. 9 (12). Date of Electronic Publication: 2019 Dec 01.
  • Publication Type:
    Journal Article
  • Language:
    English
  • Additional Information
    • Source:
      Publisher: Molecular Diversity Preservation International Country of Publication: Switzerland NLM ID: 101635614 Publication Model: Electronic Cited Medium: Print ISSN: 2076-2615 (Print) Linking ISSN: 20762615 NLM ISO Abbreviation: Animals (Basel) Subsets: PubMed not MEDLINE
    • Publication Information:
      Original Publication: Basel, Switzerland : Molecular Diversity Preservation International, 2011-
    • Abstract:
      In this paper, we analyse the Wittgensteinian critique of the orthodoxy in animal ethics that has been championed by Cora Diamond and Alice Crary. While Crary frames it as a critique of "moral individualism", we show that their criticism applies most prominently to certain forms of moral individualism (namely, those that follow hedonistic or preference-satisfaction axiologies), and not to moral individualism in itself. Indeed, there is a concrete sense in which the moral individualistic stance cannot be escaped, and we believe that it is this particular limitation that justified Crary's later move to a qualified version of moral individualism. At the same time, we also argue that there are significant merits to the Wittgensteinian critique of moral individualism, which pertain to its attack on the rationalism, naturalism, and reductionism that characterise orthodox approaches to animal ethics. We show that there is much of value in the Wittgensteinians' call for an ethics that is more human ; an ethics that fully embraces the capacities we are endowed with and one that pays heed to the richness and complexity of our moral lives.
      Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest. The funders had no role in the design of the study; in the collection, analyses, or interpretation of data; in the writing of the manuscript, or in the decision to publish the results.
    • References:
      J Med Ethics. 2013 May;39(5):273-80. (PMID: 23637426)
      BMC Vet Res. 2016 Feb 04;12:26. (PMID: 26847551)
    • Grant Information:
      M 2518 Austria FWF_ Austrian Science Fund FWF; M 2518-G32 Austrian Science Fund; P 31466-G32 Austrian Science Fund
    • Contributed Indexing:
      Keywords: Alice Crary; Cora Diamond; animal ethics; axiology; moral individualism; utilitarianism
    • Publication Date:
      Date Created: 20191207 Latest Revision: 20210908
    • Publication Date:
      20240104
    • Accession Number:
      PMC6941032
    • Accession Number:
      10.3390/ani9121057
    • Accession Number:
      31805730