Thinking about Rethinking Life and Death: The Character and Rhetorical Function of Dramatic Irony in a Life Ethics Discourse

This essay examines the manner in which Peter Singer exceeds the boundaries of ethical reasoning in arguing his position on life ethics. Specifically, it probes a narrative aesthetic that functions as rhetorical proof in his work. Attention is given to demonstrating the presence of ironic aesthetics in this narrative. Thereafter two conceptual structures—consubstantiality and ironic catharsis—are elaborated in order to show how Singer uses irony in an attempt to shape audience attitudes toward the traditional life ethics position.