Yes, it is deplorable. Dennett wrote this about twenty years ago, and he is using the term "person" philosophically to mean "someone of account who is recognized as such legally, socially, and ethically." It is not a term that the average person uses. It is not common to hear someone say, "well, they are not exactly persons yet." Mostly, people will use circumlocutions or racist, ageist and sexist comments, or just express their dismissal through action. He is reporting on this dryly.
I agree with you. This dismissal or abuse of the marginal people in our world has been appalling from the dawn of time. And your second sentence exrpesses an opinion I agree with; but bear in mind the philosophical use of the word "person." There are some people whose actions cause them to lose the rights granted to other members of society. In Old English terms, an outlaw was called a wulvesheafod, "wulf's head." He was no longer considered a worthy human being whose family could demand weregild (his man price) if he were murdered. He was denied the protection of the law (that's the true meaning of "out law") and considered no better than a wild animal who could be killed with impunity when seen taking refuge in the woods he was banished to. I think we've come a long way from that, but the deplorable instinct is still there. On Mon, Oct 25, 2010 at 10:01 AM, Janice Carello <[email protected]>wrote: > That some human beings are not considered full persons continues to be a > major problem in our society. Limiting some rights and responsiblities of a > person (temporarily or permanently) as citizen is one thing; denying > personhood is another. > > >> >> "Human beings not considered full "persons" by society at large (judging >> by the way the rights given them and the respect they are treated with): >> infants and children, the retarded or mentally deficient, convicts-- denied >> the right to vote, drive, have the freedom of movement, decision-making, >> using money, make legal decisions, etc. >> > > > >> > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "R-SPEC: The Rochester Speculative Literature Association" group. > To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. > To unsubscribe from this group, send email to > [email protected]<r-spec%[email protected]> > . > For more options, visit this group at > http://groups.google.com/group/r-spec?hl=en. > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "R-SPEC: The Rochester Speculative Literature Association" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/r-spec?hl=en.
