TELOSscope: The Telos Press Blog

The Question of Plant Ethics

Following my recent articles in the New York Times, “If Peas Can Talks, Should We Eat Them?” and “Is Plant Liberation on the Menu,” I have been debating the question of plant ethics with Professor Gary Francione (Rutgers University). The three installments of our debate are now available on the blog of Columbia University Press: part 1, part 2, and part 3. In our discussion, Professor Francione and I have addressed issues surrounding veganism, plant sentience, anthropocentrism, environmental justice, the possibility of non-conscious intentionality, and the controversial difference between vegetal response and a mechanical reaction.