CHAPTER 19 What Is a Person? Linda MacDonald Glenn, J.D., LL.M. Faculty, School of Natural Sciences California State University Monterey Bay, Seaside What does it mean to be a person? The designation of personhood is given to those entities who have moral and/or legal status, and the significance of the designation varies depending on whether one is contemplating metaphysical, moral, or legal personhood. In this era of exponential technological advances, our previous understandings and worldviews are chal- lenged; we are witness to the creation of new life-forms and the interconnectedness of current life-forms. The lines between persons and property are becoming increasingly blurry. There are at least three major areas in which technology is challenging and even forcing us to reconsider traditional notions of personhood: fetal personhood, animal rights, and human- machine mergers. The notion of personhood is not static; it is the result of dynamic, evolving processes. In a manner akin to the ‘‘extended mind’’ philosophy, the notion of personhood is part of a complex system, and as such, fixing absolute boundaries is an exercise in futility. An expanded legal notion of personhood is therefore warranted—there ought to be established, by law, a baseline level of moral and legal status, expanding to be more inclusive, always uplifting and elevating, and never diminishing. HISTORY AND BACKGROUND To have moral status is to be worthy of moral consideration; that is, if an entity has moral status, then we are obligated to consider its well-being, needs, and interests. The determi- nation of whether or not something is worthy of moral consideration depends on the worldview or framework, as explored below. THE GREAT CHAIN OF BEING The great chain of being (or scala naturae, meaning ‘‘ladder of being’’) is a medieval worldview where everything in the universe had a divinely preordained place in a hierarchical order, depicted as a series of links. One of the basic tenets of the Judeo-Christian faith is that ‘‘man’’ is special because he alone is made in the image of God: ‘‘above all creatures, he is the object of God’s love and attention; the other creatures . . . were given for man’s use’’ (Rachels 1990, 87). This hierarchical, anthropocentric worldview has been the justification for holding only human life as special and sacred and also for the idea that other creatures may be used 229 COPYRIGHT 2018 Macmillan Reference USA, a part of Gale, a Cengage Company WCN 02-200-210