Knowing What We Are Worth

This is an edited version of the book-launch speech by the philosopher James Franklin in Sydney in November.

The essential message of this book is that humans are ethically important in an absolute sense. The universe would be much worse off if it lacked them. It would be worse off if it lacked individual ones, such as yourself. The explosion of a lifeless galaxy is just a firework, the death of a human is a tragedy. Because humans are completely different things from stones.

That’s it, really. Depending on where you’re coming from, you’re likely to think, either, I know that, it’s a platitude, what is he going on about? Especially if you’re a literary person you might think that, as classic literature is often about the importance of persons and what happens to them. Or, you’ll think, I’ve studied a bit of philosophy and science, that’s incompatible with everything I know, it doesn’t fit in with a scientific world picture and it can’t possibly be right…