Watch the following video on the ethics of killing animals for food, by the philosopher Tyler Doggett: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3HAMk_ZY07g
In the video, Doggett argues that it is not morally okay to kill animals for food. And he begins by pointing out that it is clearly not morally okay to kill people for food. And so he asks — if you do think it’s okay to kill animals for food, what’s the difference between people and animals in virtue of which it is okay to kill animals, but not okay to kill people?
He then considers a few possibilities: (i) there are genetic differences between people and animals; (ii) people are more intelligent than animals; and (iii) there are special emotional bonds that we have with people and that we do not have with animals. Doggett concedes that these are important differences between people and animals. But he does not think they do the work we need. That is, he does not think that any of these differences can explain why it is morally okay to kill animals for food, but not okay to kill people for food.
Then he considers a couple of other arguments: (iv) it is okay to kill animals for food because human beings are at the top of the food chain; and (v) it is okay to kill animals for food because they would kill us if they had the opportunity. He then explains why (he believes) neither of these arguments is successful.
After you’ve watched the video and considered the arguments, please complete a 1 page write up in which you give the best argument you can for why it is morally permissible to kill animals for food.
Sample Solution
