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Il dilemma etico dei pet. Tra bestie, animali e persone

Matteo Andreozzi

Abstract


The Ethical Dilemma of Pets. Between Beasts, Animals, and Persons

The main aim of this paper is to demonstrate the need to discuss the moral status of pets, showing how this can even offer an opportunity to rethink the entire set of relationships between humans and non-human nature. I start by asking “who” or “what” pets are and why they should be treated morally different from other “beasts”. I also show how both anthropocentric and animal ethics are unable to solve the dilemma. In conclusion, I explore two possible coordinates to use in order to solve the dilemma: “interest” and “appropriate relational partiality”. I claim that these two key concepts could also be useful to show the need to find a mutual theoretical and conceptual framework toward which both anthropocentric and non-anthropocentric environmental ethics could refer.


Keywords


animal rights; animal welfare; companion animals; contextual ethics; impartialism; intrinsic value; partialism; pets; relational ethics; special duties.

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References


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DOI: https://doi.org/10.7358/rela-2022-01-andr

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Copyright (©) 2022 Matteo Andreozzi – Editorial format and Graphical layout: copyright (©) LED Edizioni Universitarie

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Relations. Beyond Anthropocentrism
Registered by Tribunale di Milano (04/05/2012 n. 211)
Online ISSN 2280-9643 - Print ISSN 2283-3196

Executive Editor: Francesco Allegri
Associate Editor: Matteo Andreozzi 
Review Editors: Sofia Bonicalzi - Eleonora Adorni
Editorial Board: Ralph R. Acampora - Carol J. Adams - Vilma Baricalla - Luisella Battaglia - Rod Bennison - Matthew R. Calarco - Piergiorgio Donatelli - William Grove-Fanning - Serenella Iovino - Luigi Lombardi Vallauri - Christoph Lumer - Joel MacClellan - Dario Martinelli - Roberto Marchesini - Alma Massaro - Serpil Oppermann - Simone Pollo - Paola Sobbrio - Kim Stallwood - Sabrina Tonutti - Jessica Ullrich - Federico Zuolo

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