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Animalism, Dicephalus, and Borderline Cases 

Author: Stephan Blatti
DOI: 10.1080/09515080701540867
Publication Frequency: 6 issues per year
Published in: journal Philosophical Psychology, Volume 20, Issue 5 October 2007 , pages 595 - 608
Formats available: HTML (English) : PDF (English)
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Abstract

The rare condition known as dicephalus occurs when (prior to implantation) a zygote fails to divide completely, resulting in twins who are conjoined below the neck. Human dicephalic twins look like a two-headed person, with each brain supporting a distinct mental life. Jeff McMahan has recently argued that, because they instance two of us but only one animal, dicephalic twins provide a counterexample to the animalist's claim that each of us is identical with a human animal. To the contrary, I argue that in cases of dicephalus it is obvious neither that there is one animal nor that there are two of us. Consequently, the animalist criterion does not straightforwardly apply to cases of dicephalus. I defend an account of dicephalus that is both sensitive to the complexity of twinning phenomena and not inconsistent with animalism. In my view, dicephalic twins are a borderline case of the concept HUMAN ANIMAL. I conclude with some speculative remarks concerning the normative import (if any) of my claim that dicephalic twins are a borderline case.
Keywords: Animalism; Conjoined Twins; Dicephalus; Personal Identity
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