Definitions
Glossary and definitions (E.g. veganism, plant based, vegetarian).
INDEX des définitions
Agent moral
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A moral agent is a being capable of making moral judgments based on notions of right and wrong, and of bearing ethical responsibility for them. He has the capacity to act intentionally according to moral principles.
Animal
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A multicellular, eukaryotic organism of the kingdom Animalia (or Metazoa), characterized by:
Motility (the ability to move spontaneously and independently at some point in its life cycle, typically utilizing specialized muscle or locomotory cellular structures).
Heterotrophic nutrition by ingestion (obtaining energy and organic molecules by consuming other living or dead organisms, rather than by photosynthesis).
Embryonic development that typically progresses through a blastula stage (derived from a zygote formed by sexual reproduction).
Differentiated tissue types organized into complex organ systems (such as nervous, muscular, and digestive systems), with the exception of basal groups like sponges (Porifera).
A lack of rigid cell walls surrounding their cell membranes, distinguishing them from plants, fungi, and algae. Animal
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A multicellular, eukaryotic organism of the kingdom Animalia (or Metazoa), characterized by:
Motility (the ability to move spontaneously and independently at some point in its life cycle, typically utilizing specialized muscle or locomotory cellular structures).
Heterotrophic nutrition by ingestion (obtaining energy and organic molecules by consuming other living or dead organisms, rather than by photosynthesis).
Embryonic development that typically progresses through a blastula stage (derived from a zygote formed by sexual reproduction).
Differentiated tissue types organized into complex organ systems (such as nervous, muscular, and digestive systems), with the exception of basal groups like sponges (Porifera).
A lack of rigid cell walls surrounding their cell membranes, distinguishing them from plants, fungi, and algae. Animalism
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Animalism is a political and philosophical movement considering that non-human animals must possess fundamental rights, that their interests must be taken into account equally to those of humans, and that all forms of exploitation, domination, or killing of animals by humans must be abolished.
Animalist
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An animalist is a person who adheres to animalism.
Antispeciesism
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Philosophical and political movement that considers there is no moral justification for discriminating against living beings based on their species. Antispeciesism opposes the idea that the human species is superior to other species.
Cognitive bias
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Systematic deviation in information processing leading to a judgment error, distorted perception, or illogical conclusion.
Example: Believing that a vegan person is constantly in poor health and only remembering the moment they catch a cold, while ignoring all the athletes and vegan people who are in perfect health. Cognitive dissonance
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An uncomfortable state of tension felt by a person who simultaneously holds two or more cognitions (ideas, beliefs, values, emotions) that contradict one another. To reduce this tension, the individual will generally modify one of their cognitions (change an attitude or belief), add new cognitions to justify the conflict, or minimize the importance of the contradiction.
Consciousness
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Consciousness is the mental faculty of having an immediate perception of oneself, one's thoughts, actions, and environment.
In philosophy and psychology, it is generally divided into several dimensions:
Phenomenal consciousness: The capacity to experience subjective sensations (sentience).
Self-consciousness: The capacity to perceive oneself as an individual distinct from the rest of the world and to reflect on one's own existence.
Moral consciousness: The capacity to make a normative judgment on the moral value of one's own actions or those of others. Exploitation
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The action of using a resource or, in the case of sentient beings, of treating individuals as objects or means to our service, taking advantage of them for personal purposes to the detriment of their well-being or interests.
Human
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A bipedal primate mammal belonging to the species Homo sapiens, characterized by:
A highly developed brain yielding advanced cognitive capabilities (abstract thought, complex articulated language, logical reasoning, and self-awareness).
Strict and habitual bipedalism, freeing the upper limbs for tool manipulation and complex crafting.
Highly organized social structures based on culture, institutions, knowledge transmission, and symbolic systems.
Markedly reduced body hair compared to other great apes. Intelligence
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Mental faculty enabling the acquisition of knowledge, reasoning, planning, problem-solving, abstract thinking, comprehension of complex ideas, rapid learning, and adaptation to one's environment.
Patient moral
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A moral patient is a being that deserves moral consideration (e.g., humans, sentient animals). They are the target or object of moral actions, but are not necessarily capable of being responsible for them.
Sapience
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The advanced mental capacity to think abstractly, reason logically, manipulate complex concepts, and demonstrate high wisdom or superior intelligence.
Examples:
Solving an abstract mathematical problem or conceiving a scientific theory.
Planning very long-term actions by anticipating complex consequences.
Reflecting on abstract philosophical concepts such as justice, morality, or existence. Sentience
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Capable of experiencing subjective experiences and sensations (such as pain, pleasure, hunger, or fear) from one's own point of view, implying a form of perceptual consciousness (the capacity to consciously perceive and interpret one's environment).
Speciesism
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Discrimination practiced by humans against animals, consisting of attributing an inferior moral value to them and justifying their exploitation on the grounds that they belong to another species.
It is compared to racism: just as a racist discriminates based on race, a speciesist discriminates on the basis of species. Vegan
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A vegan is a person who practices veganism.
Veganism
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Veganism is a philosophy and way of living that seeks to exclude all forms of exploitation of, and cruelty to, animals for food, clothing, entertainment, or any other purpose.
Veganism is also defined as a social justice movement, alongside the fight against racism, sexism, or any other oppression. Vegetarian
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A person who practices a vegetarian diet, which is a diet that excludes all animal flesh (meat, poultry, fish, and seafood), but generally allows the consumption of animal-derived products such as eggs and dairy.
Vegetarian
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A person who practices a plant-based diet, which is a diet that excludes the consumption of all animal-derived products (meat, fish, eggs, dairy, honey, etc.).