Exceptionalisms in the ethics of humans, animals and machines
| Date | 13 May 2019 |
| Published date | 13 May 2019 |
| Pages | 183-195 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/JICES-11-2018-0089 |
| Author | Wilhelm E.J. Klein |
| Subject Matter | Information & knowledge management,Information management & governance,Information & communications technology |
Exceptionalisms in the ethics of
humans, animals and machines
Wilhelm E.J. Klein
School of Creative Media, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong
Abstract
Purpose –This paper aims to examine exceptionalismsin ethics in general and in the fields of animal and
technologyethics in particular.
Design/methodology/approach –This paper reviews five sampleworks in animal/technology ethics it
considersrepresentative for particularly popular forms of “exceptionalism”.
Findings –The shared feature of the exceptionalismsexhibited by the chosen samples appears to be born
out of the cultural and biologicalhistory, which provides powerful intuitionsregarding the on “specialness”.
Research limitations/implications –As this paper is mostly a critique of existing approaches, it
containsonly a limited amount of counter-proposed alternativeapproaches.
Practical implications –This is a discussion worth having because arguments based on (human or
biological) exceptionalismhave more chance of resulting in significantly altered theoretical conclusions and
practicalsuggestions for normative guidance thannon-exceptionalist perspectives.
Social implications –The approaches critiqued in this paper have a significant effect on the way the
authors approachanimals, machines/technologies and eachother.
Originality/value –The paper identifies intuitive notions of exceptionalism and argues in favour of a
reformist, ethical expansioniststance, which views humanity as residing (and other biologicalorganisms) on
the same plane of ethicalsignificance as any other entity regardless of its material composition.
Keywords Ethics, Computer ethics, IT Ethics, Moral psychology, Information ethics,
Exceptionalism, Materialism, Determinism, Consciousness, Technology ethics, Machine ethics,
Philosophy of technology
Paper type Conceptual paper
Human and bio-exceptionalism
The primary object of contention for this paper is exceptionalism –not only in the form of
human exceptionalism but also in the broader sense of what may be called “bio-
exceptionalism”.What I mean by this is the tendency to somehow regard humans (as well as
other biological life forms) as somehow more significant (especially ethically speaking) and
different in a way that goes beyond mere, undeniabledifferences such as our unique ability
to perform complex calculus. The type of exceptionalism I intend to critique refers to a
stance where one type of entity is considered exceptional by definition or a priori. This
constitutes special treatmentwhere the “specialness”is simply assumed and stipulated, not
derived or justified.
Thus, this paper should be seen as a continuation of the discussions put forward by,
among others, Gunkel (2012),Birch (1993),Dennett (2006)[1] and Anderson (2011),allof
whom have presented their own thoughts and solutions to these problems of moral agency
and patiency –with which I find myself in various degrees of agreement and/or
disagreement. However, the paper is not a detailed discussion of their perspectives, but
instead will critique some of the axioms and intuitions put forward by a number of
contemporary ethical frameworksand approaches, and argue how and why these constitute
Exceptionalisms
in the ethics
183
Received29 November 2018
Revised24 January 2019
30January 2019
Accepted30 January 2019
Journalof Information,
Communicationand Ethics in
Society
Vol.17 No. 2, 2019
pp. 183-195
© Emerald Publishing Limited
1477-996X
DOI 10.1108/JICES-11-2018-0089
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