Executive summary: Deafness should not be automatically cured at birth from a utilitarian perspective, as it does not inherently reduce well-being and respecting individual preferences is important.
Key points:
Preference utilitarianism respects an individual’s choice to remain deaf, similar to respecting sexual orientation preferences.
Wellbeing can be experienced equally through different sensory modalities, so lacking audition does not necessarily reduce utility.
Curing deafness without consent ignores the preferences and plans of deaf individuals, treating them as merely sentient rather than as persons.
Societal acceptance and accessibility for deaf people are crucial; curing deafness alone may not effectively increase wellbeing.
In an ideal society, any individuals born with sensory differences would be accommodated and included.
As long as information can be communicated, the specific sensory modality does not affect the utility experienced.
This comment was auto-generated by the EA Forum Team. Feel free to point out issues with this summary by replying to the comment, andcontact us if you have feedback.
Executive summary: Deafness should not be automatically cured at birth from a utilitarian perspective, as it does not inherently reduce well-being and respecting individual preferences is important.
Key points:
Preference utilitarianism respects an individual’s choice to remain deaf, similar to respecting sexual orientation preferences.
Wellbeing can be experienced equally through different sensory modalities, so lacking audition does not necessarily reduce utility.
Curing deafness without consent ignores the preferences and plans of deaf individuals, treating them as merely sentient rather than as persons.
Societal acceptance and accessibility for deaf people are crucial; curing deafness alone may not effectively increase wellbeing.
In an ideal society, any individuals born with sensory differences would be accommodated and included.
As long as information can be communicated, the specific sensory modality does not affect the utility experienced.
This comment was auto-generated by the EA Forum Team. Feel free to point out issues with this summary by replying to the comment, and contact us if you have feedback.