The Mistreatment of Dead Bodies

Cadavers have a multitude of possible uses--from the harvesting of organs, to medical education, to automotive safety testing--and yet their actual utilization arouses profound aversion no matter how altruistic and beneficial the motivation. Feinberg considers the causes and effects of this cultural phenomenon and examines discussions by several moral philosophers of the conflict between offended sentiment and appeals to interest. He takes exception to arguments advanced in defense of moral sensibility and concludes that there is no unmanageable conflict between effective humanitarianism and the maintenance, under flexible control, of the essential human sentiments. (KIE abstract)