Anthony Wrigley a.wrigley@keele.ac.uk
Harm To Future Persons: Non-Identity Problems and Counterpart Solutions
Wrigley
Authors
Abstract
Non-Identity arguments have a pervasive but sometimes counter-intuitive grip on certain key areas in ethics. As a result, there has been limited success in supporting the alternative view that our choices concerning future generations can be considered harmful on any sort of person-affecting principle. However, as the Non-Identity Problem relies overtly on certain metaphysical assumptions, plausible alternatives to these foundations can substantially undermine the Non-Identity argument itself. In this paper, I show how the pervasive force and nature of Non-Identity arguments rely upon a specific adoption of a theory of modality and identity and how adopting an alternative account of modality can be used to reject many conclusions formed through Non-Identity type arguments. By using Lewis’s counterpart-theoretic account to understand ways we might have been, I outline the basis of a modal account of harm that incorporates a person-affecting aspect. This, in turn, has significant implications for ethical decision-making in areas such as reproductive choice and the welfare of future generations.
Acceptance Date | Apr 14, 2011 |
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Publication Date | Apr 1, 2012 |
Publicly Available Date | Mar 29, 2024 |
Journal | Ethical Theory and Moral Practice |
Print ISSN | 1386-2820 |
Publisher | Springer Verlag |
Pages | 175 -190 |
DOI | https://doi.org/10.1007/s10677-011-9280-0 |
Keywords | Harm, Non-identity problem, Counterparts, Genetic selection |
Publisher URL | https://doi.org/10.1007/s10677-011-9280-0 |
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