N.º 6 – The relevance of sentience: shaping non-anthropocentric politics

This dissertation explores the contributions of political philosophy to the debate about the consideration of nonhuman sentient beings. Firstly, anthropocentrism and speciesism are analyzed as the dominant positions in moral and political philosophy, according to which human interests have priority (if not exclusive consideration) over nonhuman interests. It is argued that both positions are unjustified and that sentience is the criterion that matters for both moral and political consideration. Once anthropocentric biases are removed, political philosophy can translate ethical issues into the language of justice and place the interests of nonhuman sentient beings within the political realm. Secondly, Rawlsian and non-Rawlsian versions of contractualism are discussed to determine their compatibility with the protection of nonhuman interests. Finally, three fundamental works are analyzed in the context of the so-called “political turn in animal studies”: Zoopolis (2011) by Sue Donaldson and Will Kymlicka who claim the recognition of citizenship for domesticated animals, denizenship for liminal animals, and sovereignty for wild animals; Sentientist Politics (2018) by Alasdair Cochrane who proposes a cosmopolitan sentient democracy; and A Theory of Justice for Animals (2013) by Robert Garner who stresses the need to develop theories of justice that are sensitive to nonhuman interests but also politically feasible. The general conclusion to be drawn is that it is urgent to shift the debate on the consideration of nonhuman sentient beings from a question in applied ethics to a question of political action that requires a commitment of political institutions to the protection of nonhuman sentient beings.

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