Bioethics, Transgender People and Human Capabilities
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.14422/rib.i29.y2025.006Keywords:
bioethics, transgender people, human capabilities, vulnerability, human dignityAbstract
The aim of this article is to address the transgender reality from a dialogue between bioethics and Nussbaum's capabilities approach. First, we suggest how we can approach transgender people from a bioethical perspective. Then, we revisit some of the fundamentals of Nussbaum's normative theory to provide a philosophical foundation for bioethics, and we select three core human capabilities proposed by the philosopher in her list to see what they contribute to our understanding of transgender issues. The conclusion leads us to affirm that the capabilities approach, which has human dignity and an anthropology that combines conation and vulnerability at its core, allows us to enrich the bioethical perspective on transgender people. In addition, we also observe that the selected capabilities help us to grasp certain issues of justice, dignity, and rights, which may also raise bioethical problems.
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