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1.1 Environmental - scholars Flashcards

1
Q

Singer - definition and description of sentience

A

the capacity to suffer and experience joy; the only defensible boundary of concern for the interests of others

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2
Q

Singer - speciesism definition

A

allowing the interests of one’s own species to override the greater interests of members of other species

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3
Q

Singer - response to speciesism: the principle of equality

A

requires all suffering be considered equally, regardless of species. we have ‘a moral obligation to cease supporting’ speciesism

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4
Q

Singer - examples of speciesism

A
  • meat consumption and treatment of livestock raised to be eaten
  • we don’t accept experimenting on human babies or brain damaged humans who have equal or lower characteristics of sentience than adult mammals we do accept experimenting on
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5
Q

Singer - reasons to keep the wilderness for the sake of future generations

A
  • we have a culture of wilderness to pass down
  • they should have choice over what to do with it
  • it is priceless, we cannot regrow something that is purely natural
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6
Q

Singer - the origins of western attitudes to the environment

A

attitudes of Hebrew people as expressed in the early Bible, and ancient Greek philosophy - humans viewed as the centre of the moral universe

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7
Q

Singer - how Biblical story of the flood promotes dominion

A

implies to ‘act in a way that causes fear and dread to everything that moves on the earth’ is in accordance with a God-given decree

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8
Q

Aquinas’ view on the hierarchy of nature

A

follows Aristotle’s idea that ‘it is undeniably true that she (nature) has made all animals for the sake of man’

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9
Q

Aquinas: classification of sin

A

not possible to sin against non-human animals or the natural world - just the self, neighbour, and God

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10
Q

Singer - description of western attitudes to the environment

A

nature has no intrinsic value - concern for preservation of it exists as it can be related back to human well-being

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11
Q

Singer - scarcity value applied to nature

A

the scarcer things become, the more value we tend to place on them. ‘remnants of true wilderness left to us are like islands amidst a sea of human activity’

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12
Q

Palmer - problems with the Christian idea of stewardship

A
  • implies a separation between humans and nature
  • promotes the false idea that nature is dependent on humans for management
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13
Q

Palmer - how we apply the right to life

A

apply it to humans, not all living things, taking for granted that human life is superior to other life and that we deserve special protection

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14
Q

Palmer - description of individualist consequentialist approach

A

broadly utilitarian, aim of ethical behaviour is the ‘best’ consequence. the individual organism is the unit of concern, but it is the state of affairs within the organism rather than the organism itself which generates value

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15
Q

Singer - description of ‘the conscious’ morally considerable beings

A

no concept of themselves existing in the future, so no preference to continue living. replaceable

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16
Q

Singer - description of the ‘self-conscious’ morally considerable beings

A

have concepts of themselves as individuals who endure time, so have a preference to continue living. not replaceable

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17
Q

Singer - how non-sentient beings are valuable

A

instrumentally. their value = their ability to bring pleasure to sentient beings

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18
Q

VanDeVeer’s principles of priority for ethical decision making when interests of morally significant beings conflict

A

psychological complexity (more complex = stronger claim to priority)
importance of claim (more basic the interest at stake = stronger claim to priority)

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19
Q

Attfield: what moral considerability depends on / which beings are morally considerable

A

the ability to flourish / exercise the basic capacities of a species - only inanimate objects are not morally considerable

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20
Q

Attfield’s principles of priority for ethical decision making where interests of species conflict

A

psychological complexity (tends to take greatest significance)
needs, interests, wants, preferences (basic survival needs are more important that wants / preferences)

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21
Q

Varner’s description of ‘interests’

A

something that has a welfare of its own that matters from a moral perspective. possessed by all individual living things

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22
Q

Varner’s value hierarchy

A

based on desire: organisms with ground projects at top, followed by other organisms capable of desire, with organisms with only biological interests at bottom

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23
Q

Palmer - criticism of Singer and VanDeVeer’s approaches to the value of different beings

A

difficulty functioning in overall environmental ethics due to seeing only sentient beings as ethically relevant

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24
Q

Palmer - criticisms of general individualist consequentialist approaches to environmental ethics

A
  • do not ascribe enough value to the organism so do not solve replaceability
  • identification of value with experience is anthropocentric
  • subjective to what humans deem important
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25
Calicott - criticisms of individualist consequentialist approach to environmental ethics
-if all killing is a loss of value, it is hard to accept predation -makes it hard to support differing treatment of wild and domestic animals
26
James French - description of the 'Trust Technique'
recognises animals as sentient beings and their behaviour as a result of emotions. seeks to transcend the unhealthy approach of dominance we have towards animals, to build cooperation, understanding, and shared well-being
27
Anna Breytenbach - description of communication with animals
achieved through true, deep empathy, resulting in potential telepathic communication allowing us to listen to animals' messages for us
28
Pope Francis Laudato Si - definition of 'environment'
a relationship between nature and the society which lives in it
29
Pope Francis Laudato Si - human duty to the environment (3 points)
- protect it and use resources responsibly - recognise the value of all living beings in God's eyes - respect creation and its inherent laws
30
Pope Francis Laudato Si - what is an 'integral ecology' and why do we need one
a central unifying principle of social ethics (a common good), to solve the singular complex social and environmental crisis we face through combating poverty and protecting the environment
31
Portuguese Bishops - why we need to pass on the environment to future generations
the environment is part of a logical receptivity. it is on loan to each generation
32
Pope Francis Laudato Si - why we must highlight intergenerational solidarity
the world is a freely received gift we must share with others as a 'basic question of justice'
33
Pope Francis Laudato Si - importance of human relationship with the environment
one of the three fundamental relationships in which human life is grounded
34
Pope Francis Laudato Si - how we have damaged our relationship with the environment, and the impact
we have refused our limitations and have a distorted view of taking dominion - disruption of relationship with creation disrupts our relationship with God
35
Roger Crook - 'humans view relationships in terms of...
...their relationship with God'
36
Roger Crook - why the environment and human activity have worth
environment is God's sacred creation with importance to him, and human activity is part of God's creative process
37
Lynn White Jr - what Christianity 'bears a huge burden of guilt' for
Western view of the mission to overmaster the world
38
Lynn White Jr - why Christianity is the most anthropocentric religion the world has ever seen
the idea that we are made in God's image
39
Scott I Paradise's suggested revisions to traditional belief about the environment (3 points)
- change the universe exists for man's use to man has been given responsibility for the earth - change only man and the things he treasures have value to all things have value - protecting quality of the environment should come before production consumption and exploitation
40
Andrew Linzey - how doing wrong to the environment is doing wrong to God
violating his right for his creation to be respected
41
Andrew Linzey - who God's creation exists for, and who his love is intended for
- creation exists for God - his love is intended for all creatures
42
Andrew Linzey - benefits of treating animals based on their intrinsic value not instrumental value
develops greater spiritual appreciation of the worth of creation
43
Catholic Bishops' Conference - 'a way of life which damages and disregards...
...God's creation (...) is contrary to the vision of the Gospel'
44
Chrysostom - points of admiration of the lifestyle of the ascetics, and view on killing and eating animals
- their bread is made from honest labour not, and they gain greater pleasure feasting on fruits than is found at royal tables - killing and eating animals portrayed as negative
45
Norman Habel - 'kabash'
the original Hebrew phrase used in the Bible, which means to 'subdue', pointing towards 'harsh control' - cannot be translated to promote stewardship
46
Normal Habel - what is the Earth Bible Project
the international project he founded, which publishes and calls attention to Biblical sections related to concern for the environment
47
St Francis' view on connection between humans and animals, and how he demonstrated this
-believed we are connected through God, animals are our brothers and sisters -tamed an aggressive wolf through prayer
48
St Basil - why we have a fellowship with animals
they were given the earth as home in common with us, and they too love the sweetness of life
49
St Basil - view on dominion
cruel and shameful
50
Francis Bacon - 15th-17th century attitudes to the environment
science is a calling and requires we 'bind her (nature) to our service and make her our slave'
51
Augustine - view on refraining from the killing animals and the destruction of plants, and evidence of this
it is the 'height of superstition' - Biblical stories include Jesus destroying a fig tree, and causing pigs to drown
52
St Paul's 'doth God care for oxen?' suggests...
the command to rest oxen on the sabbath was given for human benefit - animals only have instrumental value
53
who was Aldo Leopold
publisher of 'A Sand Country Almanac' who is credited with being a founder of the modern environmental movement
54
Aldo Leopold's moral maxim
'a thing is right when it tends to preserve the integrity, stability and beauty of the biotic community. it is wrong when it tends otherwise'
55
Aldo Leopold aimed to reject anthropocentric standards through doing what
enlarging the boundaries of the moral community to include collectively the land
56
Arnae Naess - what is an ecosophy
a personal ethics system / set of values about the environment that guides action. fully developed, an ecosophy inevitably leads to deep ecology
57
who was Arnae Naess
the founder of the deep ecology movement - author of 'Ecology, Community, and Lifestyle'
58
Arnae Naess' 3 core beliefs
- capitalist ideology is root cause of environmental issues - solution to environmental issues is promoting ecosophy - all living things have intrinsic value
59
Arnae Naess - key points of the 8 core values all ecosophies should share
- all life, diversity, and richness of life have intrinsic value - current human interference with nature is excessive and unnecessary - policy and ideology change is needed so all life can flourish, and those who subscribe to these points have an 'obligation directly or indirectly to participate in the attempt to implement the necessary changes'
60
James Lovelock's Gaia Hypothesis description
holds that organisms not only competed, but cooperated to maintain an environment where life could be sustained in a process of co-evolution
61
James Lovelock - greenhouse effect as evidence 'the planet is alive'
it is in a state of homeostasis, adjusting its gaseous mantle so temperatures remaining roughly stable around the requirements for life, independent of the sun
62
2001 Amsterdam conference declaration in support of Gaia Hypothesis
the planet 'behaves as a singly self-regulating system compromised of physical, chemical, biological, and human components'
63
Dawkins' criticism of Lovelock's Gaia Hypothesis
things could not happen for the good of the group simply because they were for the good of the group - eg plant production of CO2 is a by-product of plant function which happens to benefit the earth, but does not occur for the sake of the earth
64
Singer: criticism of Lovelock's Gaia Hypothesis
implies nature is a realised entity, which it is not
65
Plato: the whole cosmos is alive...
... and Earth a living organism.
66
Plato's view on the teleology of all elements on Earth and the living world
serve greater good of making and supporting the whole of life of the cosmos
67
WWF living planet report 2024 key points
1970-2020 73% decline in average wildlife population size a call to action: the choices we make in the next few years will determine the future of life on earth
68
Pope Francis: statement from the Vatican regarding environmental issues
greedy exploitation of environmental resources is a threat to peace - the environment is a gracious gift we must care for
69
Bentham's views on animal welfare
it is equally insufficient a reason to abandon sensitive animals because of their differences to humans as it is to abandon a human because of the colour of their skin 'the question is not 'can they reason?' 'can they talk?' but 'can they suffer?'

Ethics (6 decks)

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