Analogy, Marginality and Action. Peter Singers Famine, Affluence, and Essay

Analogy, Marginality and Action. Peter Singers Famine, Affluence, and Morality Analysis - Essay Example In the fifth paragraph, Singer emphasized that helping starving people is a moral obligation by people, but granted that it does not sacrifice anything that is â€Å"comparably† important. For instance, if by donating a hundred dollars in a foundation that feeds starving children and families in Africa would cost the life of your child who also needs the money for her operation, then one will be spared of guilt by keeping the money for his child’s operation instead. In other words, if a person acknowledges he or she can feed a single family in Africa by donating his money allotted for a fancy smart phone, then his action is morally justifiable and is fulfillment of duty. Another important assumption in Singer’s essay follows that proximity and distance are also factors in extending our moral duties to our fellow humans despite the fact that other people around us are not feeling obliged to do so. He emphasized that numbers cannot be used as a plausible excuse for not helping other people who are badly in need because we acknowledge that by donating without considering other people’s interest can actually save a single life or two. Singer’s central premise in his essay is summed up as extending our help to people in dire need, despite our proximity and distance, without sacrificing something that is equally significant. His point was that our morality may somehow explain that it is our moral obligation as human beings living in the same earth to extend our help by not being selfish and materialistic, and not only a show of charitable work because as what he said, people who give to charities are praised, while those who do not are not condemned. In other words, helping starving children, for instance, can well be shown as voluntary and not obligatory. People who choose to buy clothes rather than donating to the children of Africa cannot justify their action because they act in that manner so as to look pleasant and not to prote ct themselves. The Analogy The last sentence of the fifth paragraph tells us an analogy about a drowning child in a pond and a person happens to witness the child drowning. Singer’s analogy fits perfectly with his main assumption that we ought to help other people in need, despite the inability of other people to see her situation, and without sacrificing something that is comparably significant. Simply saying, in that situation, our clothes do not bear more significance compared to a life that is at risk. In other words, we prevent what is bad (the possible death of the child in the pond) and promote what is good (saving the life of the child). ‘Level of Marginality’ In giving away something to the needy, Singer puts a specific, yet abstract limit as to the amount we are obliged to. He used the phrase â€Å"until we reach the level of marginality.† It is like a common version found in the Christian bible that a way to heaven is by abandoning all of oneâ⠂¬â„¢s properties and wealth and giving them after to the poor. Singer requires â€Å"reducing ourselves to the level of marginal utility† (par. 27). In the moderate version of his premise, he does not imply that people ought to live in a level of marginal utility such that their families are likely to suffer in the end, as well. What he

Ecology Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Ecology - Research Paper Example The transitions did not follow a successive order but were rather random for each squirrel. In addition, it became evident that a relationship exists between the behavioral transitions. From the analysis, the behavioral changes appeared to be the results of chance and were very random. The highest transition frequency was between the food searching behavior and food handling. The lowest frequency occurs in vigilance behavior and food searching. The animals must strive to strike a balance between safety precautions and food searches. For the balance to occur, squirrels have to set the priorities right. It is critical for them to determine when the urgency for security must surpass the urgency for food. Introduction The Eastern Gray squirrel’s main habitat is the eastern North America and parts of Canada (Makowska and Kramer 2006). This species relies on seeds, nuts, acorns, beechnuts, butternuts, and hickory nuts for food. These squirrels usually remain in their dens and nests during winter. The Gray squirrel must avoid getting into the way of its multiple predators. These predators include hawks, owls, raccoons, and snakes. Socially, these squirrels value relationships and have close associations within their communities. This species of squirrels exhibits unique behaviors when feeding. These squirrels have many predators and have to stay wary of while searching for food. This is the reason why squirrels exhibit multiple behavior changes in their search for food, as they have to strike a balance between feeding and remaining secure. Many scientists have tried to decipher the behavioral patterns of the squirrels in the venture for the search of food. Numerous ecologists have been striving to explain why these behaviors result. This experiment sought to establish the different patterns portrayed during the squirrel’s search for food (Parker and Nilon 2008). Prior to this experiment, we predicted that the gray eastern squirrel portrays several foragi ng patterns. In addition, we hypothesized that there was a relationship the transition from one pattern to the other. Specific predictions suggested that there was vigilance behavior that led to food searching. There was also a possibility that food-handling behavior would precede vigilance behavior. Methods In this experiment, we observed squirrels for duration of fifteen minutes. We used focal fallows to observe the behavioral patterns of the squirrels. After observation, we tallied the frequencies of transitions indicating. Finally, we used chi-square test to determine the relationship between the transition behaviors. Results Statistical analysis of the data derived from tallying the observations presented the data available in the table 2 in the figures shown. The graph in figure shows the number of squirrels that exhibited different transition behaviors. The highest frequency occurred between food searching and food handling. The transition from vigilance behavior to food sear ching presented the lowest frequency. The squirrels also switched from vigilance behavior to food handling at a remarkable frequency. Only in few occurrences did the squirrels exhibit a transition from either vigilance or food handling behavior to engage in social behavior. It became evident that the squirrels did not exhibit any transition from social behavior to food