Martha Nussbaum’s recent engagement with ecological issues and her project of creating the list
of animal capabilities attests to her growing interest in developing a non-anthropocentric philosophy.
In her recent article “What Does it mean to be Human – Don’t Ask”, 1 published in
NY Times (August 2018), she raises the problematic of anthropocentric thought. According to
her, the question itself is a problem and it exposes human being's profound narcissism. She
thus calls to cease such questioning. This paper, while recognizing Nussbaum’s contribution in
exposing that the way we ask the question about the human being already discloses our understanding
of being a human being, attempts at analyzing the problematic in Nussbaum’s call.
More specifically, the thesis guiding this article is that the reflection on ecological, social, and
political issues cannot exist without the reflection on the human being and his/her place in the
world.Martha Nussbaum’s recent engagement with ecological issues and her project of creating the list
of animal capabilities attests to her growing interest in developing a non-anthropocentric philosophy.
In her recent article “What Does it mean to be Human – Don’t Ask”, 1 published in
NY Times (August 2018), she raises the problematic of anthropocentric thought. According to
her, the question itself is a problem and it exposes human being's profound narcissism. She
thus calls to cease such questioning. This paper, while recognizing Nussbaum’s contribution in
exposing that the way we ask the question about the human being already discloses our understanding
of being a human being, attempts at analyzing the problematic in Nussbaum’s call.
More specifically, the thesis guiding this article is that the reflection on ecological, social, and
political issues cannot exist without the reflection on the human being and his/her place in the
world.
