Examples Of Genetic Manipulation In Gattaca

The film Gattaca is an American film that premiered in 1997, about a future society where babies are conceived through genetic manipulation to ensure that they possess “favorable” traits. The film is about Vincent Freeman, who was born outside of genetic manipulation and faces genetic discrimination because of it. Gattaca takes place in the not so distant future where eugenics, the practice of “improving” genetic quality is common. In this society, there is a database that classifies those as “valid” who are genetically modified and those conceived naturally and thus are more susceptible to genetic complications as “invalid”. Genetic discrimination is technically illegal in this society but similarly to racial discrimination in our own society
However, genetic manipulation is still a slippery slope for more trivial “improvements”. The people in the film did not stop at eliminating harmful diseases but they also started altering things like muscle mass, intelligence, personality traits, hair color and this is when eugenics becomes problematic. Like the society in Gattaca, we could be at risk of becoming a superficial society obsessed with perfection. For example Eugene Marrow, the man Vincent borrows his DNA samples from in order to pose as a valid was obsessed with perfection. Marrow was genetically engineered to be a winning swimmer, his entire existence was dedicated to swimming and yet he still wasn’t good enough. Eventually, we came across someone who was as better swimmer than him and he received a silver metal. Marrow began to feel useless, he was genetically perfect and yet he was not, so he attempted to kill himself by running in front of a car. He failed, survived and as a result was paralyzed from the waist down. Marrow became even more depressed, he found some use in helping Vincent but in the end, he killed himself because even though he was genetically engineered to be the “best” but he was not and thus a failure. By meeting Vincent, an invalid who was far more qualified to do great things despite his genetical disadvantages, made Marrow realize that genetic manipulation is not what makes you the “best”. Perhaps it gives you an advantage, which why Marrow decided to give Vincent, his DNA samples but that is not was Vincent eventually became an astronaut, he became one based on his own natural merit. Eugenics is about “improving” individuals but Marrow is an example Gattaca suggests that Eugenics become problematic when we stop