A Plea for Humanism
Doug MacLean, Professor of Philosophy at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, will be speaking October 8th as part of the Monday Seminar Series from 12:00-1:30 in room 101, West Duke Building.
MacLean’s talk will examine Peter Singer’s criticism of moral theories and moral practices that favor the interests of human beings over the like interests of non-human animals — “speciesism” — likened by Singer to racism and sexism. MacLean will examine Singer’s argument, suggest that it rests on a naïve conception of our relation to animals, and argue that morality depends on assuming that human beings are uniquely important.
MacLean’s current research focuses on practical ethics and issues in moral and political theory that are particularly relevant to practical concerns. Most of his recent writing examines how values do and ought to influence decisions, both personal decisions and government policies. He has written more general survey articles on risk analysis, risk aversion, and environmental ethics.