Comparative Humanities

Question:
“If you’re reading this, you’re probably a person. Probably, but not definitely…. if you’re reading this, you’re probably a “natural person,” as opposed to a “juridical person.” That is to say, you’re a human being—a human being with personhood status. Probably.” (Kevin Curran, 1)

“Personhood is not an automatic quality of the human individual; it is something to be achieved, the higher the achievement, the higher the credit” (Wiredu 1992, 104).
Based on the statements above, argue for and against some of the following theories of personhood using Kevin Curran’s “What Was Personhood? (Pages 1 to 5) as reference. You can quote from other sources to support your position.
Theories on Personhood
• Genetic Criteria:
John Noonan (“You are a person if you have human DNA, and you’re not a person if you don’t”)
• Cognitive Criteria:
Mary Ann Warren (Consciousness, reasoning, self-motivated activity, capacity to communicate, self-awareness)
• Social Criterion:
(You are a person whenever society recognizes you as a person, or whenever someone cares about you)
• Sentience Criteria:
Peter Singer (The key to personhood is sentience…. the ability to feel pleasure and pain…. capacity to suffer)
• Legal Criteria
Personhood is a right…. can be surrendered or forfeited when you violate the law…through grossly inhumane action
• Gradient Theory
Personhood comes in degrees…you can have more or less of it.
Length – Length –12-point font minimum length; Double space. Minimum of 4 pages.
Citation of Sources Any information or images used must be cited using MLA style with a Works Cited page at the end of the Reflection. Not citing sources constitutes plagiarism and the rules in the syllabus for plagiarism will apply.