Body-Self Dualism in Contemporary Ethics and Politics

Abstract

The primary thesis of this work is that many views on sex, abortion, and euthanasia entail that a person is not identical to her/his body, a position the authors regard as untenable. Lee and George begin with the belief that metaphysical views on the nature of humanity have vast, and often unobserved, influence on debates in modern ethics and politics. Therefore, it is worthwhile to examine metaphysical assumptions in order to determine whether they are leading us to false ethical conclusions. The authors take it as their task to demonstrate first the errors of body–self dualism, a view rampant in contemporary debate, and then by extension the ethical positions that view supports. Following Aristotle and Aquinas, Lee and George argue for a notion of humanity focusing on our corporeal nature. Human beings are fundamentally animals, albeit of a unique sort, different from other animals. Self-awareness is not a capacity of a nonphysical mind, but bodily. This view is explicitly contrary to notions of personhood based on consciousness to which others often appeal. Positions such as this one posit a nonidentity between body and self. Consequently, in ethical debates, proponents of this sort of dualism do not respect people's bodies. Body–self dualism is implicit in the hedonism of drug-taking. Advocates of euthanasia and the pro-choice position rely on it to make their cases. Lee and George, believing they have refuted this metaphysical view, regard these ethical positions as discredited since they entail a flawed metaphysics. The authors continue to argue against drug-taking, abortion, euthanasia, and sex outside of marriage.