Dead Wrong: The Ethics of Posthumous Harm
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Author Description
It Is Possible For An Act To Wrongfully Harm A Person, Even If The Act Takes Place After The Person Is Dead. David Boonin Defends This View In Dead Wrong And Explains The Puzzle Of Posthumous Harm. In Doing So, He Makes Three Central Claims. First, That It Is Possible For An Act To Wrongfully Harm A Person While They Are Alive Even If The Act Has No Effect On That Person's Conscious Experiences. Second, That If This Is So, Then Frustrating A Person's Desires Is One Way To Wrongfully Harm A Person. And Third, That It Is Possible For An Act To Wrongfully Harm A Person Even If The Act Takes Place After The Person Is Dead. Over The Course Of The Book, Boonin Introduces The Significance Of Posthumous Harm, Deals With Each Of His Three Main Claims In Turn, Responds To The Objections That Might Be Raised Against The Book's Thesis, And Examines Some Of The Ethical Implications For Issues Such As Posthumous Organ And Gamete Removal, Posthumous Publication Of Private Documents, Damage To Graves And Corpses, And Posthumous Punishment And Restitution. David Boonin. Includes Bibliographical References And Index.
Menrva's Summary
THE THESIS
Can an individual be wronged by actions that occur after their death? David Boonin, a professor of philosophy, investigates the conceptual possibility of posthumous harm by challenging the traditional requirement that harm must be experienced consciously. He constructs an argument based on the premise that frustrating a person's desires constitutes harm, thereby extending the scope of moral obligation beyond the duration of a biological life.
THE SCOPE MAP
What You Will Find
- A philosophical framework linking desire-frustration to the concept of harm.
- Analysis of the temporal disconnect between an act and its impact on the subject.
- Ethical applications regarding organ removal, posthumous publication, and desecration of remains.
Scope Limits
- The text does not provide a legal manual for estate law or probate regulations.
- It does not address theological or religious perspectives on the afterlife or the soul.
THE AUTHORITY PERSPECTIVE
Scholars and students of ethics frequently note the rigorous logical structure Boonin employs to dismantle the 'experience requirement' for harm. Experts highlight this as a significant contribution to the literature on death and moral status, particularly for those interested in the intersection of metaphysics and applied ethics.
Page Count:
0
Publication Date:
1900-01-01
Publisher:
Oxford University Press,
ISBN-10:
0191878626
ISBN-13:
9780191878626
Philosophy
Respect for persons
Applied ethics
Ethics
Metaphysics
Death & dying
Moral and ethical aspects
Dead
