Abstract
Consciousness, or its lack, is often invoked in debates in applied and normative ethics. Conscious beings are typically held to be significantly more morally valuable than non-conscious, so that
establishing whether a being is conscious becomes of critical importance. In this paper, I argue that the supposition that phenomenal consciousness explains the value of our experiences or our lives, and the moral value of beings who are conscious, is less well-grounded than is commonly thought. A great deal of what matters to us and about us can be explained by functional and representational properties that may not be sufficient for phenomenal consciousness. I conclude with some reflections on how these claims might affect debates in ethics.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 127 - 138 |
Number of pages | 12 |
Journal | Journal of Consciousness Studies |
Volume | 21 |
Issue number | 1-2 |
Publication status | Published - 2014 |