Obvious provocative question: so what, if anything, does make one person better than another?
If 'better' is taken in the moral sense, then one possible answer would be that one person is better than another if their moral character/actions are judged to be ethically better on whatever system of ethics you prefer to use. This is probably the way we normally use the phrase 'better person'.
If 'better' means 'more successful at being a person', then another possible answer would be that one person is better than another if they fit the criteria for personhood better. (For example, you are a better person than a dog, because a dog doesn't fit several of the criteria we use to define personhood while you do.)
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Date: 2004-12-08 09:36 am (UTC)If 'better' is taken in the moral sense, then one possible answer would be that one person is better than another if their moral character/actions are judged to be ethically better on whatever system of ethics you prefer to use. This is probably the way we normally use the phrase 'better person'.
If 'better' means 'more successful at being a person', then another possible answer would be that one person is better than another if they fit the criteria for personhood better. (For example, you are a better person than a dog, because a dog doesn't fit several of the criteria we use to define personhood while you do.)