In this article Olson and Pellisier discuss how artificial wombs will change human reproduction. The authors believe that over time the concept of an egg, an artificial womb, will be used for human reproduction, rather than incubation of fetus within a woman’s body. This process is called ectogenesis, which is “the development of artificial wombs that can sustain fetuses to term without the need for women's bodies.” (Smajdor, 2007) This article discusses the concept of an artificial womb, the health & safety benefits, the advantages to potential parents, the possibility of gender equality and balanced parenting roles and potential resistance to using artificial wombs. While the concept of “artificial wombs” is not relatively new, it has made quite the resurgence lately as we are starting to see more examples and studies to prove the possibilities of a different kind of human gestation in the future. The authors write that “humanity inevitably will return to the egg via “artificial wombs” that allow women the same gestating liberty as birds in the air” (Olson & Pellisier, 2011). While the authors don’t expect this technology to be available soon, they do believe that over time it will become available as a method of reproduction. Along with scientific studies, the arts are also starting to show an awareness of the concept of artificial wombs. In one of her recent performances Lady Gaga climbed out of a synthetic womb as she performed one of her musical numbers “Born this Way” and other books and films are referencing this reproductive option. In 1932, Aldous Huxley wrote the book “Brave New World” which was a mix between science fiction and fantasy but was a pioneer in the discussion of anticipatory developments in reproducti... ... middle of paper ... ...n of the concept of utilizing artificial wombs for human creation in the future through research is likely to occur outside of the United States but they believe it will happen. The idea of using artificial wombs in the next 25 – 50 years is becoming more of a reality. Works Cited Garcia, J.E. (2005). In Vitro Fertilization. Retrieved July 4, 2011, from eMedicine health Web site: http://www.emedicinehealth.com/in_vitro_fertilization/article_em.htm Olson, N., & Pellisier, H. (2011). Artificial Wombs Will Spawn New Freedoms. Retrieved July 4, 2011, from Institute for Emerging Ethics & Technologies Web site: http://ieet.org/index.php/IEET/more/4758 Smajdor A. (2007) The Moral Imperative for Ectogenesis. Cambridge Quarterly of Healthcare Ethics, 16,(3), 336-345. Retrieved from: http://search.proquest.com.dbprox.vinu.edu/docview/201362621?accountid=41640
In kilner’s case study “Having a baby the new-fashioned way”, present a story that can be relatable to a lot of families struggling to have a child. This is a dilemma that can be controversial and ethical in own sense. The couple that were discussed in the case study were Betty and Tom. Betty and Tom who are both in their early forties who have struggled to bear children. Dr. Ralph Linstra from Liberty University believes that “Fertility can be taken for granted”. Dr. Ralph talks about how many couples who are marriage may run into an issue of bearing a child and turn to “medical science” to fix the issue. He discusses that “God is author of life and he can open and close the womb”. That in it’s self presents how powerful God.
Catalano, Michael. "The Prospect of Designer Babies: Is It Inevitable?" The People, Ideas, and Things (PIT) Journal. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 May 2014.
One aspect of control that is touched upon from the beginning of the novel until the end is the control of the population birth and growth. As a way to maintain the society’s motto of “Community, Identity and Stability,” the number of inhabitants is managed through the artificiality of the brave new world’s use of technology. In the first chapter of the novel, the reader is introduced to the process of creating humans in this Utopia. The advancement of science made it possible for the building of an artificial arrangement with the reproductive glands and equipment needed for fertilizing and hatching the resulting eggs. The fact that machines do what is done by human reproductive systems shows how science has dominated over man in this world.
Aiding the death of infants is a much disputed controversy in healthcare. H. Tristram Engelhardt Jr. provides an ethical view that there is a moral duty not to treat an impaired infant when this will only prolong a painful life or would only lead to a painful death. It is these individuals, like Engelhardt, who must defend this position against groups who consider that we have the ability to prolong the lives of impaired infants, thus we are obligated to do so.
With the increased rate of integrating In Vitro Fertilization (IVF), there has been a steep inclination within the associated needs of specifications. Observably, the development of babies using scientific measures was initially formulated and specified for developing the diverse range of development associated with the same (Turriziani, 2014). However, these developments are noted to be creating an adverse impact on the natural course of events and subsequently, resulting with an adverse impact on the natural process of the development of babies. The initial integrations within the system of IVF for developing babies have further been initiated with the effective use of science to develop a healthy baby. Hence, the use of such progressions can be argued as not hampering the ethical needs associated with the same. Conversely, the initial progression within the same and the changes in the use of such practices are identified as unethical, as it has been acting as a threat in the natural course of development of embryos and altering the natural course of events, suspected to be imposing significant influence on infant mortality (Turriziani,
The article, “Rethinking the Biological Clock: Eleventh-Hour Moms, Miracle Moms, and Meanings of Age-Related Infertility” addresses some of the concerns and controversies surrounding the notion of biological clock and age-related infertility, which poses challenges to a woman’s reproductive life. This article brings an insight of how the ideologies, attitudes, experiences and circumstances with respect to pregnancy are different for biological and miracle moms. In addition, it also states about the role of certain assistive reproductive technologies (ARTs) that changes women’s conceptions of motherhood and of the body, thus constructing certain mythologies regarding age-related infertility. Henceforward the article mentions some vivid studies and questionnaires that were carried out, which contradicted and disproved them. The studies also concluded as to how the door to such technologies and techniques allowed large numbers of women to voluntarily postpone child bearing, thus increasing the danger of infertility, leading to the rise of forthcoming problems in their life.
In Huxley’s Brave New World, human life is conceived in a bottle; the embryo no longer grows in the mother’s womb, and therefore no bond is formed between the mother and the baby.
With her op-ed piece “Womb for Rent,” published in the Seattle Times (and earlier in the Washington Post), syndicated columnist Ellen Goodman enters the murky debate about reproductive technology gone global. Since Americans are outsourcing everything else, “Why not then rent a foreign womb?” (169) she asks. Goodman, a Pulitzer Prize–winning columnist for the Washington Post Writers Group, is known for helping readers understand the “tumult of social change and its impact on families,” and for shattering “the mold of men writing exclusively about politics” (“Ellen Goodman”). This op-ed piece continues her tradition of examining social change from the perspective of family issues.
The omnipotent promise of ART, coupled with parents’ deep desires to have their “own child”, overwhelms and overshadows the capacity to think, sometimes with tragic consequences. We see parents who relied on reproductive technologies to conceive now expect other technologies will rescue and maintain their babies. It is heartbreaking to hear NICU parents wonder if their pregnancy would have been healthier and the baby more likely to thrive if they had transferred only one embryo. Or listen to them worry that it was the selective reduction from quads to twins that brought on the premature labor and then birth at only 25 weeks.
The Web. The Web. 15 Apr. 2013. The. Waskey, Andrew J. -. “Moral Status of Embryos.”
The addition of a child into a family’s home is a happy occasion. Unfortunately, some families are unable to have a child due to unforeseen problems, and they must pursue other means than natural pregnancy. Some couples adopt and other couples follow a different path; they utilize in vitro fertilization or surrogate motherhood. The process is complicated, unreliable, but ultimately can give the parents the gift of a child they otherwise could not have had. At the same time, as the process becomes more and more advanced and scientists are able to predict the outcome of the technique, the choice of what child is born is placed in the hands of the parents. Instead of waiting to see if the child had the mother’s eyes, the father’s hair or Grandma’s heart problem, the parents and doctors can select the best eggs and the best sperm to create the perfect child. Many see the rise of in vitro fertilization as the second coming of the Eugenics movement of the 19th and early 20th century. A process that is able to bring joy to so many parents is also seen as deciding who is able to reproduce and what child is worthy of birthing.
Edwards originally became interested in and began researching about couples with infertility problems while attending the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, in the 1950’s. Previously, studies had proven that it was possible for egg cells from rabbits to be fertilized outside of the body. It was shown that if sperm was mixed with the egg cells in an appropriate environment, then the embryos could develop successfully without the need for another living system. With this knowledge, Edwards took it upon himself to continue the research at the National Institute for Medical Research in London, where he eventually discovered that it was also possible for human eggs to be fertilized outside of the womb. The first human embryo to be fertilized successfully outside of the human body was documented in 1969, followed by the first “test-tube” baby, Louise Brown, being born in 1978. Just two years later, the world’s first in-vitro fertilization centre, known as the Bourne Hall Clinic, was founded by Edwards and Eng...
[9] Shanley, M.L, Surrogate Mothering and Women's Freedom: A Critique of Contracts for Human Reproduction, (Politics and the Human Body) editors-Elshtain, J.B, and Cloyd J.T1995, Vanderbitt University Press, Tennessee back
Foht, Brendan P. "Three-Parent Embryos Illustrate Ethical Problems with Technologies." Medical Ethics, edited by Noël Merino, Greenhaven Press, 2015. Current Controversies. Opposing Viewpoints in Context,
Designing life from conception is an intriguing concept. Brave New World’s World State is in control of the reproduction of people by intervening medically. The Hatchery and Conditioning Centre is the factory that produces human beings. Ovaries are surgically removed, fertilized and then fetuses are kept incubated in specifically designed bottles. There are five castes which include: Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta, and Epsilon. Each caste is destined to have a different role; for example, an Epsilon, the lowest caste, is not capable of doing an Alpha’s job. This is because “the fetuses undergo different treatments depending on their castes. Oxygen deprivation and alcohol treatment ensure the lower intelligence and smaller size of members of the three lowers castes. Fetuses destined to work in the tropical climate are heat conditioned as embryos” (Sparknotes Editors). When producing ...