Deck 42: Speaking of Animal Rights Mary Anne Warren

Question 1

Warren thinks that Regan's concept of inherent value is

A) useful.
B) obscure.
C) pointless.
D) mistaken.

Answer 1

B

Question 2

One of the problems that Warren sees in Regan's theory is his unclear notion of

A) animal rights.
B) inherent value.
C) sentient animals.
D) self-awareness.

Answer 2

B

Question 3

Warren's view is a "weaker" animal rights view because

A) her arguments are weaker than Regan's.
B) the arguments apply to fewer kinds of animals.
C) she argues that animal rights are not as strong as human rights.
D) Both b and c

Answer 3

C

Question 4

Warren objects to Regan's theory because it requires drawing a sharp line between

A) animals with rights and animals without rights.
B) animals and people.
C) animals with moral value and animals with rights.
D) animals with inherent value and animals with moral value.

Question 5

Warren defines cruelty as

A) inflicting pain or suffering.
B) taking pleasure in causing pain.
C) being indifferent to the pain one causes.
D) All of the above

Question 6

Warren believes that rights can meaningfully be ascribed only to entities that

A) are human.
B) are sentient.
C) have sophisticated mental capacities.
D) can participate in self-government.

Question 7

Aristotle argued that to be free moral agents, people must be able to

A) do philosophy.
B) be sentient.
C) solve problems.
D) listen to reason and change their behavior accordingly.

Question 8

Warren rejects the anti-cruelty argument for treating animals decently because

A) it does not necessarily preclude the trivial killing of animals.
B) on this view, simply regretting killing animals makes doing so not wrong.
C) avoiding talk of animal rights weakens the case in practical terms.
D) All of the above

Question 9

Warren claims that it is morally significant that humans, but not other animals,

A) listen to reason to settle conflict.
B) use language to cooperate in shared projects.
C) are subjects of a life.
D) Both a and b

Question 10

Warren believes that the strength of a being's rights varies, depending on

A) the probability that the being is sentient.
B) the being's mental sophistication.
C) Both a and b
D) Neither a nor b

Question 11

Warren agrees with Regan that some nonhuman animals have rights.

Question 12

Warren believes that possessing rationality makes persons more intelligent than animals that are not persons.

Question 13

Warren argues that some things may have inherent value but not rights, such as trees.

Question 14

Warren does not think we can draw a sharp line between animals with rights and animals without rights.

Question 15

According to Warren, the mutual recognition of moral equality helps prevent chronic and bitter conflict in human societies.

Question 16

Warren argues that the more rational you are, the stronger the rights you deserve.

Question 17

Rationality is morally relevant because it allows humans to cooperate nonviolently to resolve conflicts.

Question 18

Warren thinks it makes no difference whether we choose to talk about animals having rights or about humans having a duty to avoid cruelty.

Question 19

According to Warren, an anti-cruelty view about animals is insufficient because it would still allow animal suffering and killing.

Question 20

Warren defends a "weak animal rights" position.

Question 21

How would Regan respond to Warren's counterarguments? Would she be able to respond to him in turn? Who do you think has the better argument?

Question 22

Do you think there is a "sharp line," with some animals having rights and some not? If so, how should we decide where to draw that line? If there is no sharp line, must we say that all animals have rights, or that none do?

Question 23

Is Warren correct that rationality is morally relevant? In other words, is it morally acceptable to consider humans more important than other animals just because we are rational? Does that mean that it is okay to treat nonrational humans (such as infants and senile elderly people) as if they were animals? Why or why not?

Question 24

What are the two major line of critique that Warren presses against Regan? Which of the two is the most compelling? How could Warren's position be strengthened further?