Nature of dignity and human dignity

In: Human affairs: HA ; postdisciplinary humanities & social sciences quarterly, Band 27, Heft 2, S. 131-144

Abstract

Abstract
This paper argues that the concept of dignity should be understood as a concept that we use to describe an aggregate of values and qualities of a person or thing that deserves esteem and respect. The primary value that creates the right to have dignity is life. The degree of dignity a life form has depends on its place in the evolutionary scale. Human beings are the highest form of life so they possess the highest degree of dignity.