Moral Personhood refers to the actions we judge based on whether they are morally good or bad. To know whether an action is morally good or bad, we must base it on the intention or motivation of the person who committed it. If the intention was pure, clear, and good, we can say that the action was morally good. On the other hand, if the intention was evil, bad, and unkind, we can say that the action was morally bad.
There are two classifications of moral people and these are the moral agent and moral patient. Each, whether moral agent or moral patient, plays an essential part or role in society.
Moral Agents or Agentive - people who have the full ability and proper knowledge about the difference between what is right and what is wrong. Every action that they do must be held accountable, as they have a responsibility to take care of the moral patients. Normal parents are an example of moral agents, as they are both sources and recipients of action.
Moral Patients or Non-Agentive - the opposite of Moral Agents. They are not capable enough to know the difference between what is right and what is wrong due to having difficulties in comprehending things. We can compare them to very brittle glass. This is due to the fact that they, moral patients, need the assistance and proper guidance of Moral Agents as they need them to survive in their everyday lives. Pet animals such as dogs and cats are an example of Moral Patients as they are not capable enough to perform moral actions and are just receivers of them.
Always remember that all moral agents are also moral patients, but not all moral persons can be moral agents since not everyone has the ability to think critically. Some people such as people with disabilities find it hard to comprehend the things around them and as part of the moral agents, we must not judge them and instead, empathize with them. We can show empathy by taking care and understanding their condition.
Difference of Duties and Rights:
Duties - the actions we are expected to perform. There are different types of duties and they are given using commands, laws, and imperatives. Duties are far different from rights as it has a respective sanction every time you fail to satisfy your duty.
Rights - these are what we call "entitlements". Every human has the right to live and so, they are entitled to do the things that will satisfy their needs in their life and everyone must respect that. They imply one another as a person’s rights require certain duties from other people.
There are two classifications of Rights and these are the Negative Right and Positive Right.
Negative Right - the duty without interfering with other people’s rights. In simple terms, you accomplish your duty by minding your own business.
Positive Right - the duty that interferes with other people in a good way. You provide them with what they need to keep their well-being secure and healthy.
Rights are acquired through 3 different ways, namely Contractual, Legal, and Moral.
1. Contractual Rights are acquired when we take part in an agreement with other people and/or institutions involved.
Under Contractual Rights, we have Formal Contractual Rights and Informal Contractual Rights:
Formal Contractual Rights are acquired through signing in written documents such as marriage and employment.
Informal Contractual Rights are acquired in a verbal agreement way. This includes the romantic, friendly, and familial promises.
2. Legal Rights are acquired when you become a citizen of a certain country. An example of this is your citizenship as a Filipino.
3. Moral Rights are acquired when one becomes a moral person. We can say that one truly becomes a moral person when one already possesses the qualities of moral personhood.
From here, we can conclude that all moral persons have moral rights, but not all moral persons have moral duties. This is because not everyone is capable to be spreading moral actions and being capable of comprehending things around us, is one of the characteristics a moral agent, or people who have moral duties has.
Criterial Theories of Personhood
Un-criterial Theories involve identifying a single essential quality for moral personhood. Under it, there are 5 Theories, namely Genetic Theory, Life Theory, Rational Theory, Sentient Theory, and Relational Theory.
Genetic Theory - states that a person’s defined quality is its own DNA, which is the Homo Sapiens, or in other words, us human beings.
Life Theory - states that the personhood’s defining feature is its own life or in simple terms, living alive, which also includes animals like insects and other forms of living things.
Rational Theory - states that the personhood’s defining feature is its capacity of rationality or the quality based on clear thought or reason.
Sentient Theory - states that the personhood’s defining feature is sentience or the capacity to have feelings or emotions.
Relational Theory - states that personhood’s defining feature is the caring relationships one has with other existing things.
Meta-Criterial Theories fall into two different classifications, namely the Social Personhood and Gradient Theories.
Social Personhood refers to the social or mere creation of the society, that was eventually accepted as the criteria for Moral Personhood and is solely a matter of social agreement.
Gradient Theories refer to the personhood that comes in degrees since every moral person has their own defining features of personhood in different kinds of objects.