Animal Ethics and the Anthropocene: Moral Progress and its Difficulties
Issue: • Author/s: Simone Pollo
Topics: Ecology, Ethics, Moral Philosophy, Theoretical philosophy
Animal ethics theories aim to provide arguments in favor of assigning a moral status to non-human animals (all or some of them) and, consequently, of transforming or abolishing some of the ways in which humans interact with them. Therefore, philosophical analysis regarding animals’ moral status aims at fostering moral progress in the field of human/animal relationships. According to a basic and naturalized definition of moral progress, this takes place when sympathy is extended to subjects previously ignored or underestimated. From this perspective, the current state of affairs in human/animal relationships…
On the Relation between Epistemic Progress and Moral Progress
Issue: • Author/s: Matilde Liberti
Topics: Epistemology, Ethics, Metaethics, Moral Philosophy
Scholars assume the necessity of epistemic progress (EP) for moral progress (MP), where EP involves forming more accurate moral judgments. This is problematic, since we lack the cognitive control necessary to form accurate moral judgments (Klenk & Sauer 2021). Thus, if it is true that EP is necessary for MP, and if it is true that we are naturally bad epistemic agents, then MP is impossible. Here I consider three possible logical relations between EP and MP: (A) EP is necessary and sufficient for MP, (B) EP is necessary but not sufficient for…