Iatrical Human Genome Rationalization
Sarah Burns
Iatrical Human Genome Rationalization On the edge of biotechnology in today’s society, Andrew Niccol’s approach to the Human Genetic Engineering and In-Vitro Fertilization in his sci-fi film GATTACA, reveals a dystopian society caused by the misuse of biotechnology. Vincent Freeman is naturally born into a perverse world, where births are virtually screened for diseases and weaknesses, in addition to improving any fetus through surgery of genomes. The naturally born are considered “invalid” and are placed as a lower class in a caste system based on genetics rather than being “determined by social status or the color of your skin” (Vincent, GATTACA). Vincent struggles to coexist but his aspirations of traveling to Titan become nearly shattered until he steals the identity of a quality “valid” man named Jerome Morrow. As Vincent pretends to be Jerome, he becomes able to work in the astronomical career he had dreamed of, but when the director gets murdered, an investigation throws Vincent into the trail of evidence where his in-vitro born brother, Anton Freeman, suspects that Jerome Morrow could really be his brother Vincent. Vincent beats all odds and proves his genetics wrong by surpassing his estimated date of death, and physically and mentally exceeding all the “valids”. GATTACA further proves that Human Genetic Engineering can’t be out-right banned but should be regulated to medical and pharmaceutical births only, in order to maintain the ethical and biological homeostasis of society. If the government were to outlaw genetic engineering, it would only become underground. Results such as an outbreak of anomalies throughout Homo sapiens would cause an uproar in bioscience and humanity itself. When researches and studies become banned, they usually lead to patient deaths and failed research. For example, when abortions weren’t tolerated by law, they were often back-alley abortions which led to many women dead, mutated/deformed/ or still-born
Iatrical Human Genome Rationalization On the edge of biotechnology in today’s society, Andrew Niccol’s approach to the Human Genetic Engineering and In-Vitro Fertilization in his sci-fi film GATTACA, reveals a dystopian society caused by the misuse of biotechnology. Vincent Freeman is naturally born into a perverse world, where births are virtually screened for diseases and weaknesses, in addition to improving any fetus through surgery of genomes. The naturally born are considered “invalid” and are placed as a lower class in a caste system based on genetics rather than being “determined by social status or the color of your skin” (Vincent, GATTACA). Vincent struggles to coexist but his aspirations of traveling to Titan become nearly shattered until he steals the identity of a quality “valid” man named Jerome Morrow. As Vincent pretends to be Jerome, he becomes able to work in the astronomical career he had dreamed of, but when the director gets murdered, an investigation throws Vincent into the trail of evidence where his in-vitro born brother, Anton Freeman, suspects that Jerome Morrow could really be his brother Vincent. Vincent beats all odds and proves his genetics wrong by surpassing his estimated date of death, and physically and mentally exceeding all the “valids”. GATTACA further proves that Human Genetic Engineering can’t be out-right banned but should be regulated to medical and pharmaceutical births only, in order to maintain the ethical and biological homeostasis of society. If the government were to outlaw genetic engineering, it would only become underground. Results such as an outbreak of anomalies throughout Homo sapiens would cause an uproar in bioscience and humanity itself. When researches and studies become banned, they usually lead to patient deaths and failed research. For example, when abortions weren’t tolerated by law, they were often back-alley abortions which led to many women dead, mutated/deformed/ or still-born
Cited: Bohlin, Dr. Ray. "Human Genetic Engineering." Leadership University. Probe Ministries International, 2000. Web. 22 Feb. 2013. http://www.leaderu.com/orgs/probe/docs/humgeneng.html. Center for Genetics and Society. "Human Cloning and Genetic Modification." ARHP - Association of Reproductive Health Professionals. Association of Reproductive Health Professionals, n.d. Web. 24 Feb. 2013. <http://www.arhp.org/publications-and-resources/patient-resources/printed-materials/cloning>. Miller, Kenneth, and Joseph Levine. Prentice-Hall Biology. Prentice Hall, 2006. 319. Book. http://www.pearsonsuccessnet.com . Robbins, Nicholas. "Genetic Engineering: True Freedom of Choice." mhcc.edu. mhcc. Web. 9 Feb 2013. http://www.mhcc.edu/docs/exit17/essays/ed12/Nicholas_Robbins.pdf. http://www.allthingswilliam.com/morality.html http://www.finestquotes.com/select_quote-category-Genetic%20Engineering-page-0.htm.