In the movie, GATTACA, directed and written by Andrew Niccol, the human race has turned to genetic modification in order to keep people from having undesirable traits, leaving those unmodified to be scorned by the genetically “perfect”, such as the main character, Vincent Freeman. Vincent, as one of the people born with an earlier predicted death, must bypass and go against the system in order to achieve his dream of travelling into outer space, where he can live out a life away from those who would treat him differently because of his genes. He must use the DNA of another man, Jerome Morrow, who has sold the man his identity because he cannot go on without the use of his legs.
This society is so obsessed with how someone is genetically that
The society of Gattaca has been destroyed by cruel selfish acts of genoism when if only they could just look past the difference in DNA and accept human nature then Gattaca could come together as a whole. Vincent is a good demonstration that if you put your mind to it you can achieve anything, even when ‘destiny’ is against
In director Andrew Niccol’s Gattaca, a science fictional representation of the near future portrays how genetic enhancements and offspring selection involving humans can alter how society functions. Eugenics is now the primary means of genetic engineering, where a family geneticist uses in-vitro genetic designing for a couple’s future baby. In fact, natural conception is outdated and almost obsolete. This did not stop Vincent’s parents from having a baby without any pre-constructed genetic enhancements. When Vincent was born, he was given a 30-year life expectancy with a 99% chance of future heart issues. Vincent’s younger brother, Anton, was born with the commonly practiced genetic selection. Anton exceeded Vincent in numerous aspects of life, including education, athletics, and social status. The two brothers used to play a game called “chicken”, where they would swim out to the ocean, and whoever turned back to the shore first was considered the loser. One odd day, Vincent and Anton decide to play chicken, but suddenly Anton begins to drown. Vincent realizes he finally beat his brother, but has to save him from drowning as well. Vincent ended up running away from his house and family after this incident. As Vincent grew up, he became fascinated with science, specifically, the cosmos. Despite his growing passion, Vincent had to work small jobs for a living. He ended up as a janitor in Gattaca, a large space and science institute. Vincent was certainly interested in the
Due to this mindset, job discrimination occurs all over the planet. The viewer is informed, "Of course it is illegal to discriminate, genoism it is called, but no one takes the law seriously" (Gattaca). Similarly, in To Kill a Mockingbird, racism in the South is seen as a natural way of life, nobody saw anything odd about it. In the movie, Vincent Freeman, an Invalid, believes that there is more to his life then what the doctors and society predict. Ever since he was a young child, he has had one dream: to be a navigator at Gattaca space center. At birth, Vincent was diagnosed with a 99% chance of heart failure, making him nearly useless to the people at Gattaca space center. He tells his father that he still has a one percent change of not being affected by heart disease and that he'll take it, but his father replies that the management at Gattaca would not. Vincent is not an only child; he has a genetically engineered brother named Anton who is far superior to him on paper. Despite Vincent's imperfections, he is able to beat his brother in a swim race, proving to himself that he is capable of reaching his goals. Many people that are discriminated against like Vincent see themselves as they are told. Vincent tells Irene, "They have got you looking so hard for any flaw, that after awhile that is all that you see" (Gattaca). At the beginning of Vincent's career at Gattaca, he is a lowly janitor, longing to be on the other side of
In Gattaca parents can choose to have a “Godchild” or not; while in Brave New World embryo’s are automatically genetically engineered. Having a choice is a symbol of free will and
The science fiction cinematic piece Gattaca by Andrew Niccol was released in 1997. It addresses the moral and ethical concepts regarding genetic engineering and the social order strives in the pursuit of biological perfection. The idea of perfection and genetic engineering is portrayed with a dystopian world were genetic discrimination is the foundation for society that takes place in “the not so distant future”. To address these ideas Niccol, uses archetypal characters such as Vincent as the underdog and Eugene as the supporting character to convey the psychological challenges and boundaries that have an effect on how the characters live their lives and interact within the world they live in. The films idea of genetic engineering causes the viewer to consider the ethicality of such technology and how its superiority can result in a world were individuals are bound by social restrictions and discrimination due to the presence of a scientifically engineered race of human beings.
This is what Vincent does. He finds a man named Jerome who has been injured in an accident and is now paralyzed. He takes over Jerome’s life. By using hair, skin, blood, urine and other DNA, Vincent becomes Jerome and secures a job at Gattaca. His desire to go into space can now be a reality but only if he can keep up the facade.
The film, Gattaca (1997) is set shortly where genetically conceived babies are preferred to those that are born naturally. The main characters in this film include Vincent Jerome, Eugene, Irene, Director Josef, Detective Hugo, and Anton. Vincent Freeman is among the last children to be naturally conceived. After his birth, the physicians tell his parents of his many limitations, in particular, that his lifespan is estimated to be 30.2 years (Niccol, 2015). Vincent decides to travel to the stars. However, he is categorized by the society as not suitable regarding his genetic composition, and he has turned out to be among the discriminated humans who are only offered menial careers. To proceed with his mission, he assumes Jerome Morrow’s identity since the latter had a perfect genetic composition and was paraplegic due to his involvement in a car accident. Vincent manages to deceive the urine and DNA sample testing after following a professional advice. However, his mission becomes jeopardized when his program director is murdered, and a fresh investigation is tabled.
The film GATTACA and the short story, “Nine Lives,” exemplifies the ethics of altering human life at the genetic level, through techniques of genetic engineering. Throughout GATTACA, the ability to create improved, even superior forms of human life as a positive development through eugenics is shown as well as arousing questions about the moral implications of such engineering. The main protagonist in GATTACA, Vincent Freeman, battles with the discrimination of being an “invalid” in a world of “valids” and comes to realize that he is not an inferior being in the midst of an altered humanity. In “Nine Lives,” a lone survivor of the ten genetically engineered clones of John Chow struggle come to understand itself in relation to unaltered humanity and its individuality for the first time in its life. A dystopian society is produced when unaltered humans and genetically engineered beings coexist and interact with one another due to nefarious social practices such filtering menial jobs only to “invalids” in GATTACA and the emphasis in the value of clones and their worth to society as collective work group rather than focusing on each individual’s contribution to society. The film GATTACA exhibits the adverse nature of eugenics while “Nine Lives” stresses the importance of individualism instead of collectivism and fend off the need to be reliant on others to feel welcomed in society.
Vincent Freeman was a naturally born child. He was called "invalids" along with others that were born in the same way. The doctors told his parents that he had a 99% chance of dying of a heart disorder when he was about 30 years old.
The story of Vincent shows in Gattaca that there is possibility of beating the genetic engineering system. Vincent is one of the last naturally born babies born into a sterile, genetically enhanced world, where life expectancy and disease likelihood are ascertained at birth. Myopic and due to die at 30, he has no chance of a career in a society that now discriminates against your genes, instead of your gender, race or religion. Vincent an invalid, dreams of working within Gattaca and making it into space. He combines with Jerome who was disabled in an accident to take his identity and live his life to enter the Gattaca Corporation. Vincent is selected for his lifelong desire, a manned mission to Titan.
Gattaca brought about some interesting points on human evolution and human ingenuity. We live in a world where babies are left to chance and genetic metaling is frowned upon, but in Gattaca that idea is flipped. Society judges those who are left to God as inferior. How can one be judged for the decision of their parents? Science is moving into uncharted territory, where we might be able to create “super humans” as depicted in the movie. Gattaca revealed both the pros and cons of genetic engineering in science.
The movie Gattaca is based in the distant future. The people are defined by their genetic information. In this movie, “natural” born children are classed as invalids, whereas people that are genetically created and modified are valid. The invalids are basically just as their name, invalid and must get a regular job, nothing spectacular. One of the main characters, Vincent Freeman, is the last child to be “naturally born”. After his birth, the doctors tell his parents that he has a life span of 30.2 years and there are so many genetic related things that are wrong with him. For all his childhood life, he is treated as if he is ill and sick all the time. Any little thing such as falling, or scraping his knee, is treated as if he is about to die. The couple then has another son, Anton. He is conceived by the new normal, genetic selection. He is now considered superior to Vincent. The father’s name is Anton and the second son takes his name because he is not genetically shortcoming. As a young boy Vincent has dreams of having a career working in space, but because of his invalid status, it will not be possible for him to get into the program. The brothers would often play a game called “chicken”. In this game, they would both swim out into the sea. Whoever turns around and starts to swim back first loses. One day while playing this game, Vincent actually wins. The one that is inferior actually wins. Anton begins to drown and Vincent must save him. After he wins the game, he
At first look, the world of Gattaca seems like a Utopia. Their development in genetic modification is so advanced that illnesses such as cancer, Alzheimer’s, and other diseases or disorders based upon genetics are greatly reduced, if not eliminated altogether. Endeavors like the Olympics or other athletic competitions would be pushed to entirely new heights as the athletes are literally designed to surpass our current limitations. Science could be advanced even further as the modifications allowed newborns to have a far greater chance of developing intelligence on the higher end of the IQ scale. Each piece of progress that is shown in the movie has incredible potential to save and improve millions of lives. Unfortunately, the great
Gone are the days where modern day factors like merit and aptitude dominate. With the rise of genetic engineering as a social norm, congenital difference now becomes the main discerning factor differentiating the human population as the obsession with perfection grows stronger. This promotes both genetic stratification and genetic discrimination. Narrated by Vincent Freeman, the story of Gattaca is told through his eyes. Viewers are able to catch a glimpse of Vincent’s life and his struggles in attempting to escape the genetic hierarchical system he was born in. Vincent does so in order to fulfill his dream of becoming an astronaut, a dream that was never meant to be realized for someone like Vincent. The film utilises many techniques such as flashbacks, metaphors and relationship dynamics to supplement the film’s plot and shows us how a idealized utopian society is impossible through the story of
The movie Gattaca is set in the future, and is a story about a man named Vincent Freeman who dreams of traveling to the stars. In this future, society has developed categories that each person falls in to depending on their genetic makeup. In the film parents have the ability to choose specific genetic composition of their children. Vincent Freeman’s genetics leave him in the less than favorable category making his dreams of space travel at Gattaca Corporation impossible. As one of the last natural born babies in a sterile and genetically enhanced world, Vincent had poor eyesight, heart problems and was not expected to live past the age of 30. Society has determined that people such as Vincent are in an underclass of humans and are only good for menial jobs simply based on their genotype. Vincent’s dreams will not be stifled so he devises a scheme to buy another identity. He finds Jerome Morrow a former athlete with favorable genetics, and a paraplegic as the result of a tragic car accident. The two become skilled at deceiving DNA tests as well as urine and blood testing. With Vincent and Jerome’s plan in place Vincent finds himself in a position to join a crew planning to travel to one of Saturn’s moons, Titan. Unfortunately