rational beings
Minds capable of logic
Rational beings are creatures capable of reason—of thinking logically, weighing evidence, and making deliberate choices.
The phrase appears most often in philosophy and ethics, where it distinguishes humans (and potentially other intelligent entities) from animals acting purely on instinct: Kant argued that rational beings deserve moral respect.
The term sidesteps whether the being is human, leaving room for aliens, artificial intelligences, or other minds that might reason.
- reasonBasis or justification
- artificial intelligenceMachines mimicking human thought
- consciousnessState of sentient awareness
- moral agencyCapacity for right and wrong
- moral compassInner ethical guidance system
higher reasoning · intentionality · logic · deduction · algorithms · autonomy · free will · volition · sound mind · epistemology · judgment · decision-maker · critical thinking · sapience · human nature · neural networks · sentience · abstraction
- Kantian ethicscategorical imperative, Kant, moral law, good will, practical reason
rational beingsinstruments
Tools for precise tasks
property · chattel · beasts of burden · mere objects · objects
rational, being, ratio, ration, rationale, rationality, rationally, rationalize, rationalization