Designer Babies By Stephen Law: Chapter Analysis

Parents should not have the choice to pick the characteristics and intelligence of their baby, they should have to accept what both of the parents contribute to the child in terms of characteristics and intelligence. Designer babies violate your baby's basic human rights, the parents are changing the life and mind of a living human without any

The production of a designer baby is, in my opinion, exploitation of the existence of the human individual. A designer baby is treated as an object and not a natural individual. This is not compatible with the human dignity that every individual is entitled to. The designer baby will not be accorded dignity since it will not be thinking for his good but to achieve a different goal. The designer baby is treated as a means only and not as an end. This is an abuse of the human dignity.

Have you ever asked yourself is it possible to pick and choose your kids characteristics and appearance? If you ever have thought about this topic it is called designer babies and the technology used to do this is called CRISPR. In 2015 scientists in China tried to modify human embryos so that they could edit the genes of the embryos.(OI) This test failed horribly with all 86 of the embryos dying.(OI) Many people hope that one day designer babies will be a thing. I disagree with genetically modifying humans because in the bible it states, “God made you perfectly in his own image.”

In designing an engineered baby, it is never a guaranteed that they will be born unharmed or mentally stabled. The tools that are used can potentially harm the embryo, leaving it to be destroyed, if the perfect baby is not created it is eliminated. Genetically manipulated gene are recognized to cause serious diseases or disabilities after studies are done. A gene can often have more than one usage. While it can be used to cure a disease, and help stop an inherited illness, this study should not be done on living embryos. It causes more harm than it does good, affecting and destroying the unborn causing harm. Also creating a designer baby can cause a link to racism. In the book “A Brave New World of Designer Babies” by Sonia Suter, it explains how designer babies are linked to racism and how thanks to (neo)eugenics people might want to use this to eliminate or reduce the prevalence of ethnic groups. This is a perfect example of why genetically modified humans should not be allowed. It will cause harm to children, and causes a division between children and young adults. For instance, schools, parks, playgrounds, and many more public zones, will be divided. A child can also be picked on because they are designer children, or they can be bullied by not being designer babies, and not being in the perfect image. It can cause serious separation and divide children into adulthood. This will make individuals feel bad about themselves and will affect their mental state. Having a

Dena Davis in the 5th chapter of “Genetic Dilemmas: Reproductive Technology, Parental Choices, and Children’s Futures” explores the global attitudes, policies, and morality towards determination of sex. She begins with presenting empirical evidence of some preferences held in countries such as India or China where there is a clear desire for male children. This inclination is so deeply held that mothers can be socially and physically harmed when, by pure biological chance, they fail to produce a male child. Davis and others allow sex selection in these cases, purely in the interest of harm reduction of mothers and their daughters born into such a situation.

The phrase “designer baby” was not added to the dictionary until 2004, but the idea had existed in the form of the eugenics movement since Sir Francis Galton published his book Hereditary Genius in 1869. Galton’s research suggested that intelligence is hereditary, and he believed that success is due to superior qualities that were passed down generation through generation. His research further suggested that personality traits and mental abilities were also hereditary (Plucker, 2013). Eugenics, a term coined by Galton in 1883, advocated for human breeding restrictions so as to improve the biological make-up of the human race (Steen, 1996). Technology since then has advanced greatly, and designer babies are now a very real possibility.

Would you genetically modify your own child? Genetically modified babies are called “Designer Babies”. Whether “designer babies” are morally wrong or not is a big debate. Some people agree with it and others strongly disagree. The people that tend to strongly disagree are the people of the church, Christians, and Catholics. The people that disagree are mainly scientist and health advisors in the genetics field. A “Designer” baby is a child that is modified genetically before it is born. Some people want to have children and make them “designer babies” by changing their hair and eye color. They may also control their intelligence and athleticism. I believe that having

I’m treated differently than everyone else because of my race. I don’t understand it, though, because I look exactly the same as my peers. They mock me and tell me I’m inadequate, fake, and alive only due to the organ crisis. I tell them I have no idea what they are talking about, because my doctors told me that I’m just like everyone else. They laugh in my face and spit on me, ruthless in their play. I run home to my living center and cry myself to sleep.

First of all, the technical definition for a designer baby is a baby whose genetic makeup has been artificially selected by genetic engineering. This is combined with in virtro fertilization which is fertilization of an egg outside the womb to eliminate genetic disorders and diseases (Thadani 1). Even though this seem a noble purpose, there is a chance that scientist will abuse this procedure. Genetically engineering the child will not only eliminate disorders and disease, but give parents the ability to choose attributes for the child. Using this method, parents will most likely start designing babies to favor the way of life that the parents want. For instance, the parents might want the child to be intelligent, so they enhance this attribute but when the child grows up he or she might want to be an athlete. Altering the gene for intelligence might affect the outcome of whether he or she will have any

With all the freedom in America, is it fair to design a child? “A baby developing from an embryo created by in-vitro fertilization and selected because it had or lacked particular genes, the genetic makeup often having been notified by genetic engineering” (Dictionary,com), If this were to become popular the world would lack racial diversity and there could be genetic consequences.

When it comes to the subject of designer babies, or even the thought of being able to create a 'perfect' child there is either controversy or pure relief. The reason being because when it comes to designing babies there is good as well as bad. For example some may say being able to genetically modify a baby so it has no chances of coming out deformed or even with mental or psychical diseases and disabilities is a miracle. Others may say that in the law of ethics this can not be acceptable. The fact the you're choosing your child's fate is ‘wrong’ stating that whether a child ends up with a disease is life, we should not be able to control it. Which makes sense yes, unless you're talking about two parents who can't have children because

“A baby whose genetic makeup has been selected in order to eradicate a particular defect, or to ensure that a particular gene is present”; the definition of a designer baby is a simple one. A child who, through science and engineering, is given traits desired by it’s parents to resemble their view of a healthier, better baby. Whether that is to treat a mutation in the child’s DNA that could result in Down’s Syndrome or changing the baby’s eye color from brown to blue, science has made it not only conceivable but a very likely possibility, for fully designed babies to be waddling down the street within the century. Though the term “designer baby” is not one recognized by scientists, many journalists across the world have coined the term to explain the quite terrifying potential reality that lies ahead for humanity. Currently, only two types of advanced reproductive techniques can be conducted on humans. One, analyzes the sperm to determine the sex and genes of the baby, and the second screens for various genetic deformities that may occur before birth, thus allowing people to only fertilize healthy embryos.

In Mary Shelley’s, Frankenstein, Victor Frankenstein becomes fascinated with the secret of life and sets out to discover what life truly is. Thinking he discovered the secret to life, Victor successfully creates a living creature out of old body parts. Unfortunately, the creature becomes dangerous and goes on to murder Victor’s family and friends. Though Frankenstein is fictional, with modern technologies, the creation of designer babies is an increasing reality. Designer babies are genetically engineered in vitro for specially selected traits, which can vary from lowered disease risk to gender selection (“Ethics of Designer Babies” 1). With the possibility of designer babies becoming a reality, many ethical arguments have come into play. Within these arguments the pros and cons of designer babies are discussed and many ethical issues are brought up.

From a deontological perspective designer babies would be unethical because the idea goes against respect for and the dignity of an individual. The child’s value is no longer based on personality or character, but instead is based on whether their DNA represents the traits most desired in the society in which they live.

There is also the surprise of finding out the gender at time of birth. Not only are the parents delighted in the surprise at the moment of birth, but they’re just plain grateful that they’ve been blessed with a healthy child. By being able to determine gender, according to Freeman, we’re cheapening this, and making childbirth into a mere consumer choice. In the end, children are a gift, a gift of nature.