Bringing a unique perspective to the burgeoning ethical and legal issues surrounding the presence of artificial intelligence in our daily lives, the book uses theory and practice on animal rights and the rights of nature to assess the status of robots. Through extensive philosophical and legal analyses, the book explores how rights can be applied to nonhuman entities. This task is completed by developing a framework useful for determining the kinds of personhood for which a nonhuman entity might be eligible, and a critical environmental ethic that extends moral and legal consideration to nonhumans. The framework and ethic are then applied to two hypothetical situations involving real-world technology—animal-like robot companions and humanoid sex robots. Additionally, the book approaches the subject from multiple perspectives, providing a comparative study of legal cases on animal rights and the rights of nature from around the world and insights from structured interviews with leading experts in the field of robotics. Ending with a call to rethink the concept of rights in the Anthropocene, suggestions for further research are made. An essential read for scholars and students interested in robot, animal and environmental law, as well as those interested in technology more generally, the book is a ground-breaking study of an increasingly relevant topic, as robots become ubiquitous in modern society.
Author(s): Joshua C. Gellers
Edition: 1
Publisher: Routledge | Taylor & Francis Group
Year: 2021
Language: English
Commentary: TruePDF
Pages: 191
Tags: Robotics: Law And Legislation; Artificial Intelligence: Law And Legislation; Animal Rights
Cover
Half Title
Title Page
Copyright Page
Dedication
Table of Contents
List of figures
List of tables
Acknowledgments
List of abbreviations
Introduction
Defining key terms
A note on methodology
Contributions
Layout of the book
Notes
References
Chapter 1 Rights for robots: Making sense of the machine question
Framing the debate: Properties versus relations
(Dis)integrative approaches
Shortcomings of the debate
Notes
References
Chapter 2 Getting to rights: Personhoods, statuses, and incidents
Distinguishing among personhoods: Moral, psychological, legal, and relational
Distinguishing among statuses: Moral and legal
Distinguishing among incidents: Moral and legal
Hohfeld’s lacuna: Will and interest theories of rights
Conclusion
Notes
References
Chapter 3 The rights of animals: In search of humanity
The treatment of animals: Religious and intellectual perspectives
Animal rights: Properties-based, direct/indirect, relational, and legal approaches
Animal rights in court
Conclusion
Notes
References
Chapter 4 The rights of nature: Ethics, law, and the Anthropocene
Origins of the rights of nature
Environmental ethics: biocentrism, ecocentrism, and nonhuman rights
Critical environmental law in the Anthropocene: (Re)defining nature and legal persons
The rights of nature in court
Conclusion
Notes
References
Chapter 5 Rights for robots in a posthuman ecology
Navigating the conceptual map
Animal rights: Revealing tensions, not solutions
Rights of nature: Embracing vulnerability and contingency in the Anthropocene
Towards a multi-spectral framework for determining personhoods
Towards a critical environmental ethic
Applying the multi-spectral framework and critical environmental ethic
Robot rights on the horizon? Two hypothetical examples
Looking forward
Notes
References
Index
