Defining Dehumanization

Abstract

This chapter defines dehumanization. After emphasizing the importance of laying out a clear definition of the term, the chapter goes on to describe dehumanization as a kind of attitude—a way of thinking about others. To dehumanize another person, in short, is to conceive of them as a subhuman animal. People often mistake dehumanization for its effects on human behavior. This chapter argues that such notions make it much more difficult to comprehend how dehumanization works. When people think of others as subhuman, they often treat them in cruel and degrading ways, and they often refer to them using slurs. But the chapter contends that bad treatment and degrading slurs are effects of dehumanization rather than dehumanization itself.