Solidarity: at the heart of ethics

Angus Dawson (The University Of Sydney)

Abstract:

There has been much recent interest in exploring the meaning of solidarity and its role in discussions of issues in bioethics. In this paper, I outline some of this recent work with a particular focus on the account outlined and defended by Prainsack & Buyx. They provide a model of solidarity that ‘builds up’ from the individual. I argue that this approach is fundamentally flawed. I focus on a series of questions about the nature of solidarity (is it a value, principle etc?), what is it that makes it valuable, and how does it relates to other ethical considerations (particularly justice)? I defend a particular account of solidarity that sees it as a thick moral concept, playing an essential, explanatory and justificatory role in our moral thinking.