ABSTRACT
One possible interpretation of "human community" puts the exclusive emphasis on 'human,' understood as a biological category, so that "human community" is a synonym for "members of the species Homo sapiens." This chapter explores how the idea of "membership in the human community" constitutes a distinctive conception of personhood and considers the implications for Kiko and Tommy. It distinguishes two versions of the idea that personhood arises from membership in the human community: a person-by-proxy model and a social personhood model. The person-by-proxy model offers a backdoor to personhood for those members of society who cannot enter the front door by possessing certain cognitive capacities.
