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"Famine, Affluence, and Morality" is an essay written by
Peter Singer Peter Albert David Singer (born 6 July 1946) is an Australian moral philosopher who is Emeritus Ira W. DeCamp Professor of Bioethics at Princeton University. Singer's work specialises in applied ethics, approaching the subject from a secu ...
in 1971 and published in '' Philosophy & Public Affairs'' in 1972. It argues that affluent persons are
morally Morality () is the categorization of intentions, decisions and actions into those that are ''proper'', or ''right'', and those that are ''improper'', or ''wrong''. Morality can be a body of standards or principles derived from a code of conduc ...
obligated to donate far more resources to
humanitarian Humanitarianism is an ideology centered on the value of human life, whereby humans practice benevolent treatment and provide assistance to other humans to reduce suffering and improve the conditions of humanity for moral, altruistic, and emotiona ...
causes than is considered normal in
Western culture Western culture, also known as Western civilization, European civilization, Occidental culture, Western society, or simply the West, refers to the Cultural heritage, internally diverse culture of the Western world. The term "Western" encompas ...
s. The essay was inspired by the
starvation Starvation is a severe deficiency in caloric energy intake, below the level needed to maintain an organism's life. It is the most extreme form of malnutrition. In humans, prolonged starvation can cause permanent organ damage and eventually, de ...
of
Bangladesh Liberation War The Bangladesh Liberation War (, ), also known as the Bangladesh War of Independence, was an War, armed conflict sparked by the rise of the Bengali nationalism, Bengali nationalist and self-determination movement in East Pakistan, which res ...
refugee A refugee, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), is a person "forced to flee their own country and seek safety in another country. They are unable to return to their own country because of feared persecution as ...
s, and uses their situation as an example, although Singer's argument is general in scope and not limited to the example of Bangladesh. The essay is anthologized widely as an example of Western ethical thinking.


Summary

One of the core arguments of this essay is that, if one can use one's wealth to reduce suffering—for example, by aiding famine-relief efforts—without any significant reduction in the well-being of oneself or others, it is immoral not to do so. Singer raises a drowning child analogy: in his essay: inaction is clearly immoral if a child is drowning in a shallow pond and someone ''can'' save them but chooses not to. If saving the child would mean "getting my clothes muddy", this is not of "comparable moral importance", as the death of the child would "presumably be a very bad thing".. He argues further that placing greater
geographical distance Geographical distance or geodetic distance is the distance measured along the surface of the Earth, or the shortest arch length. The formulae in this article calculate distances between points which are defined by geographical coordinates in t ...
between the person in need and the potential helper does not reduce the latter's moral obligations:
It makes no moral difference whether the person I can help is a neighbor's child ten yards away from me or a
Bengali Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to: *something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia * Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region * Bengali language, the language they speak ** Bengali alphabet, the w ...
whose name I shall never know, ten thousand miles away. ... The moral point of view requires us to look beyond the interests of our own society. Previously, ... this may hardly have been feasible, but it is quite feasible now. From the moral point of view, the prevention of the starvation of millions of people outside our society must be considered at least as pressing as the upholding of property norms within our society.
The affluent, says Singer, are consistently guilty of failing to recognize this, having large amounts of surplus wealth that they do not use to aid humanitarian projects in
developing nation A developing country is a sovereign state with a less-developed industrial base and a lower Human Development Index (HDI) relative to developed countries. However, this definition is not universally agreed upon. There is also no clear agreeme ...
s. Here is the thrust of Singer's argument: *"Suffering and death from lack of food, shelter and medical care are bad". *"If it is in our power to prevent something bad from happening, without thereby sacrificing anything of comparable moral importance, then we ought, morally, to do it". *"It makes no moral difference whether the person I can help is a neighbor's child ten yards from me or a Bengali whose name I shall never know, ten thousand miles away". *"The principle makes no distinction between cases in which I am the only person who could possibly do anything and cases in which I am just one among millions in the same position".


Reception and criticism


Support

Philosopher
Gilbert Harman Gilbert Harman (May 26, 1938 – November 13, 2021) was an American philosopher, who taught at Princeton University from 1963 until his retirement in 2017. He published widely in philosophy of language, cognitive science, philosophy of mind, eth ...
considered "Famine, Affluence, and Morality" to be "one of the most famous articles written in
moral philosophy Ethics is the philosophical study of moral phenomena. Also called moral philosophy, it investigates normative questions about what people ought to do or which behavior is morally right. Its main branches include normative ethics, applied et ...
", as Helga Kuhse summarized Harman's view. In 1981, philosopher
James Rachels James Webster Rachels (May 30, 1941 – September 5, 2003) was an American philosopher who specialized in ethics and animal rights. Biography Rachels was born in Columbus, Georgia, and graduated from Mercer University in 1962. He received his Ph ...
said of the article: "one felt intellectual interest in the argument, but also guilt for not having contributed more money to relieve starvation". Singer's article inspired the writing of
Peter Unger Peter K. Unger (; born April 25, 1942) is a contemporary American philosopher and professor in the Department of Philosophy at New York University. His main interests lie in the fields of metaphysics, epistemology, ethics, and the philosophy o ...
's 1996 book '' Living High and Letting Die''. Philosopher
William MacAskill William David MacAskill (' Crouch; born 24 March 1987) is a Scottish philosopher and author, as well as one of the originators of the effective altruism movement. He was a Research Fellow at the Global Priorities Institute at the University of ...
was influenced by the essay, which he encountered in an undergraduate seminar; MacAskill later went on to be a founder of the
effective altruism Effective altruism (EA) is a 21st-century philosophical and social movement that advocates impartially calculating benefits and prioritizing causes to provide the greatest good. It is motivated by "using evidence and reason to figure out how to b ...
movement. In 2015, ''
The New Republic ''The New Republic'' (often abbreviated as ''TNR'') is an American magazine focused on domestic politics, news, culture, and the arts from a left-wing perspective. It publishes ten print magazines a year and a daily online platform. ''The New Y ...
'' noted the influence of Singer's essay on effective altruism. The "drowning child" analogy informs the title of the 2015 book ''
Strangers Drowning ''Strangers Drowning: Impossible Idealism, Drastic Choices, and the Urge to Help'' is a 2015 non-fiction book about extreme altruism, altruists, authored by ''The New Yorker'' writer Larissa MacFarquhar. It's structured as a series of profiles on ...
'' by
Larissa MacFarquhar Larissa MacFarquhar (born 1968) is an American writer known for her profiles in ''The New Yorker''. She is the daughter of the sinologist Roderick MacFarquhar. She was born in London, and moved to the United States at the age of 16. MacFarquhar ...
, which documents the lives of various extreme altruists, some of whom were influenced by Singer's essay.


Criticism and broader consideration

A common criticism of Singer's essay is the
demandingness objection The demandingness objection is a common argument raised against utilitarianism and other consequentialist ethics, ethical theories. The consequentialist requirement that we maximize the good impartially seems to this objection to require us to pe ...
. For example, the "supposed obligation" of Singer's essay has been criticised by John Arthur in 1982, by
John Kekes John Kekes (; born 22 November 1936) is Professor Emeritus of Philosophy at the University at Albany, SUNY. Education Kekes received his Ph.D. in philosophy from the Australian National University. Work Kekes is the author of a number of books on ...
in 2002, and by
Kwame Anthony Appiah Kwame Akroma-Ampim Kusi Anthony Appiah ( ; born 8 May 1954) is an English-American philosopher and writer who has written about political philosophy, ethics, the philosophy of language and mind, and African intellectual history. Appiah is Prof ...
in 2006, and Singer's claim of a straight path from commonsense morality to great giving has also been disputed. In a review for the ''
Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and also published digitally that focuses on business and economic Current affairs (news format), current affairs. Based in London, the paper is owned by a Jap ...
'' upon the release of the 2016 book version of Singer's essay, Daniel Ben-Ami argued that the key to eradicating poverty lies not only in charitable efforts but also in fostering a sense of agency among the impoverished. He gave the example of how China lifted millions out of poverty by transforming its economy, rather than being dependent on western aid and sympathy. He argued that people who wish to aid famine relief or poverty alleviation should have the freedom to do so. However, it is important to avoid perceiving the impoverished as mere passive beneficiaries of Western charity. Such a perspective should be resisted, as it overlooks their agency and potential to contribute actively to their own betterment.


Quotations

*" ither our distance from a preventable evil nor the number of other people who, in respect to that evil, are in the same situation as we are, lessens our obligation to mitigate or prevent that evil." * " it is in our power to prevent something bad from happening, without thereby sacrificing anything of comparable moral importance, we ought, morally, to do it." This, according to Singer, is a qualified reassertion of the principle that governs his argument. * "People do not feel in any way ashamed or guilty about spending money on new clothes or a new car instead of giving it to famine relief. (Indeed, the alternative does not occur to them.) This way of looking at the matter cannot be justified. When we buy new clothes not to keep ourselves warm but to look 'well-dressed' we are not providing for any important need."


See also

*
Bangladesh famine of 1974 The Bangladesh famine of 1974 () began in March 1974 and ended in about December of the same year. The famine is considered one of the worst in the 20th century; it was caused by government mismanagement, food grain smuggling to neighboring coun ...
*
Lockean proviso The Lockean proviso is a feature of John Locke John Locke (; 29 August 1632 (Old Style and New Style dates, O.S.) – 28 October 1704 (Old Style and New Style dates, O.S.)) was an English philosopher and physician, widely regarded as on ...
* ''
Doing Good Better ''Doing Good Better: Effective Altruism and How You Can Make a Difference'' is a 2015 book by William MacAskill that serves as a primer on the effective altruism movement that seeks to do the most good. It is published by Random House and was re ...
'' by William MacAskill, 2015 * ''
The Life You Can Save ''The Life You Can Save: Acting Now to End World Poverty'' is a 2009 book by Australian philosopher Peter Singer, in which the author argues that citizens of affluent nations are behaving immorally if they do not act to end the poverty they know ...
'' by Peter Singer, 2009


Notes


References

* * With a foreword by
Bill Bill(s) may refer to: Common meanings * Banknote, paper cash (especially in the United States) * Bill (law), a proposed law put before a legislature * Invoice, commercial document issued by a seller to a buyer * Bill, a bird or animal's beak Pl ...
and
Melinda Gates Melinda French Gates (born Melinda Ann French; August 15, 1964) is an American philanthropist. Born and raised in Dallas, Texas, she was educated at Ursuline Academy of Dallas, Duke University, and Duke's Fuqua School of Business. Shortly afte ...
and a new preface and two extra essays by Singer.


External links


Famine, Affluence and Morality essay
{{Authority control Philosophy papers 1971 essays Essays about effective altruism Works originally published in American magazines Peter Singer