•  
  •  
 

Commentary Type

Open Commentary

Thread

David M. Peña-Guzmán, Can nonhuman animals commit suicide?

Abstract

Peña-Guzmán’s depiction of the opponent of animal suicide as a conservative is a straw man. It is possible to accept that animals are self-conscious and reflexive yet still reject the view that they have the mental wherewithal to commit run-of-the-mill suicide. That animal behaviour can be positioned on a continuum of self-destructive behaviour does not establish that animals can intentionally kill themselves.

Author Biography

John Hadley, senior lecturer in philosophy, Western Sydney University, has published on a wide range of topics in animal ethics and political theory. Animal Property Rights: A Theory of Habitat Rights for Wild Animals (Lexington 2015) explores the theoretical and practical challenges of extending liberal property rights theory to nonhuman animals.

www.westernsydney.edu.au/staff_profiles/uws_profiles/doctor_john_hadley

DOI

10.51291/2377-7478.1299

Share

COinS