Sentientism

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Sentientism This image represents Sentientism by combining emojis and logos representing different types of sentient being: Animal, human, artificial and alien. Sentientism commits to evidence and reason and grants degrees of moral consideration to all sentient beings.

Sentientism is an ethical philosophy that grants degrees of moral consideration to all sentient beings.[1] Sentientism extends humanism by showing compassion for non-human animals as well as potential artificial and alien intelligences. In common with humanism, sentientism rejects supernatural beliefs in favour of critical, evidence-based thinking. [2] [3]

Sentientism proposes that sentience, primarily the ability to experience suffering or flourishing, should determine whether we grant moral consideration to an entity.[4] Non-sentient entities do not warrant direct moral consideration because they cannot experience the implications of our decisions.

Sentientist thinking has a long history, from Jeremy Bentham's An Introduction to the Principles of Morals and Legislation[5] through to contemporary philosophers such as Richard D. Ryder and Peter Singer.

Sentientism differs from speciesism in that it uses degrees of sentience, rather than species boundaries, to grant degrees of moral consideration.

Sentientism differs from painism[6] in that it acknowledges the full range of experience, not just that of pain, in warranting moral consideration.

Sentientism agrees with animalism that humans are animals so both warrant moral consideration. However, sentientism argues that non-animal sentient beings, such as potential artificial or alien intelligences, would also warrant moral consideration.

Notable sentientists[edit]

Notable sentientists include: Diana Fleischman,[7] Peter Singer,[8] Richard D. Ryder, Jeremy Bentham[9], David Pearce (philosopher), Steven Pinker and Alasdair Cochrane.[10]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ * Linzey, A (1998). "Sentientism". Encyclopedia of Animal Rights and Animal Welfare: 311.
  2. ^ Ryder, Richard D. (1991). "Souls and Sentientism". Between the Species. 7 (1): Article 3. doi:10.15368/bts.1991v7n1.1.
  3. ^ Woodhouse, Jamie (2018-10-07). "Humanism needs an upgrade". Areo. Retrieved 21 November 2018.
  4. ^ * Ryder, Richard D. (1993). "Sentientism". The Great Ape Project: 220–222.
  5. ^ * Bentham, Jeremy (1780). An Introduction to the Principles of Morals and Legislation. Methuen.
  6. ^ * Ryder, Richard D. (2009). "Painism versus utilitarianism". Think. 8 (21): 85. doi:10.1017/S1477175608000420.
  7. ^ "Diana Fleischman". Diana Fleischman.
  8. ^ Singer, Peter (2009). Animal Liberation. Harper Collins. ISBN 978-0-06-171130-5.
  9. ^ Bentham 1879, Ch. 17.
  10. ^ Cochrane, Alasdair (2018). Sentientist Politics. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780198789802.

External links[edit]

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