FREE ESSAY ON HUMAN GENOME PROJECT

HUMAN GENOME PROJECT

The Task at Hand
Science is defined as knowledge based on observed facts and tested truths arranged in an
orderly system. It has had an extreme effect on technology, which covers production,
transportation, and even entertainment. In the past, though, science has always remained
distant. However, with the birth of genetic engineering, science has become something
that will deeply affect lives. Advancements are being made daily with genetic
engineering: the Human Genome Project is nearly done, gene replacement therapy lies
within reach, and cloning is on the horizon. Genetically altered foods have already
become an important aspect of life with "new and better varieties" (Bier, 2001, p.65) and
even the possibilities of solving world hunger. There is no doubt of the benefits that
genetic engineering can offer society, but can scientists look that far ahead and truly
say what is for the good of society?
Does the world understand genetics enough to welcome the possibilities with open arms?
Society often runs away or hides from problems, but with genetic engineering it cannot
ignore the possible outcomes whether good or bad. Genetic engineering is clearly
beneficial to all kinds of people, but it is possible that negative issues exist which
could counteract any good results. "In the near term, there are some very interesting and
important issues that we all should consider as a society because they raise potentially
profound moral and ethical questions" (Bier, 2001, p. 70). Such issues are that of
discrimination and the dangers and difficulty in making ethical decisions. It is
society's duty to step back and view these issues before pursuing genetic research and
heading down a destructive path. 
Since the origin of man, discrimination has found its way into every type of society
through forms of sexism, racism, and religious and cultural prejudice. Throughout the
years, though, society has worked to reduce such intolerances and give everyone equal
rights. However, if genetic engineering is added to the scene, equal rights could
possibly plummet into oblivion. Andrew Niccol accentuates such inequality in his movie
Gattaca. In Gattaca, Vincent Freeman is a man who is born naturally instead of in a lab.
Because of this he is labeled by the world as an invalid, and no employment, social
position, or even love is possible for him except for those assigned specially to
invalids. In order to obtain his dream job, Vincent must use another's identity to pass
as a valid. The fact that he must be a "valid" to acquire a decent job points out the
possible outcome of discrimination in the employment world if genetic engineering would
become a reality. Employers could obtain a sample of a person's DNA and not give him/her
the job solely based on genes. Like in Gattaca, there would become jobs for those
genetically engineered: lawyers, doctors, and businessmen; and jobs for those naturally
born: janitors, bus drivers, and garbage men. In short, equality of rights and
opportunity would cease to exist.
Discrimination, however, would not stop with employment. Prejudice would become an
everyday event even in social life. If genetic engineering leads to pre-picking genes to
prevent birth defects, "how will we react to children we meet who have that disorder?"
(Baker, 2001). People will see the child and wonder why it was born. Parents will have
the chance to choose whatever genes they see fit for their child, offering it the best of
everything. Society, however, will then look down upon those children "naturally" born.
If this type of genetic engineering becomes a common occurrence, society is bound to
discriminate against those people with defects or even differences. 
Yet differences are not bad and can be seen as unique and characteristic of the person
they belong to. Some people even say that genetic engineering would "undermine the right
of every person to be valued for his or her uniqueness" (Baker, 2001). The argument is
that upon entering this life, a person is given certain qualities and inequalities that
make him/her unique to each other. These qualities shape experiences, which in turn shape
lives. Even the obstacles a person faces are meant to mold him/her and add character.
Genetic engineering, however, removes some of these obstacles. Like in Gattaca, people
would conceivably become an unthinking mass following the world's plan of their lives,
not their own. 
Today, however, people are not an unthinking mass, and we live in a society where
everyone can become involved in social and political issues. With genetic engineering on
the horizon, society needs to take a firm grasp on this ethics and ask what it truly
wants. Ethical questions are constantly being asked, yet no one wants to face the issues
at hand. People are so concerned with pleasing the majority that no one wants to take
responsibility. If no one speaks up, though, scientists will continue blindly down an
uncertain path. The problem here is that technology is so preoccupied with whether it
can, that it never even considers whether it should.
Take, for example, Mary Shelley's Frankenstein and Greg Egan's The Extra. In
Frankenstein, the narrator, Robert Walton, believes that "one man's life or death were
but a small price to pay for the acquirement of the knowledge which [he] sought"
(Shelley, 1991, 13). Victor Frankenstein reminds Walton that he was once naive in this
statement and proceeds to tell him how his own actions had led to a "hell within [him]
which nothing could extinguish" (Shelley, 1991, p. 72). Genetic engineering has acquired
this same naivete and society could be blinded to the possible consequences if something
is not done. The risks alone are too overpowering to ignore. As in the case of cloning
Dolly, it took 277 tries to produce her, and scientists produced many lambs with
abnormalities. The techniques are extremely risky and "more often than not unsuccessful"
(Baker, 2001). 
Risks, however, are not the only concern. Societal abuse of genetic engineering also
needs to be a great consideration. With all of the possibilities genetic engineering
provides, exploitation of its purposes is bound to occur. The Extras, by Greg Egan,
examines such abuse. The main character, Daniel Gray, has created a produce line of
genetically engineered humans that lack any form of intelligence. Their only purpose on
is to serve as organ donors for their owner. In essence, genetic engineering has become a
fixation of indulgence: "The prospect of living for centuries seemed to have made the
rich greedier than ever; a fortune that sufficed for seven or eight decades was no longer
enough" (Egan, 2001, p. 47). With this kind of thinking, society would become what Thomas
Hobbes describes as "a condition of war of every one against every one" (Hobbes, 2001, p.
21). Abuse of genetic engineering could lead people to forget any sort of compassion and
humanity because they are living only for themselves. Charles Darwin even states, "Man
selects only for his own good: Nature only for that of the being which she tends"
(Darwin, 2001, p. 3). It is human tendency to try to obtain the best of everything.
However, as society takes on nature's responsibility of natural selection, Darwin points
out that man does not discern between desire and necessity. Genetic engineering would
become that of selfishness and personal gain. In The Extras, Gray even admits, "In the
end it came down to longevity, and the hope of immorality" (Egan, 2001, p. 54). Nothing
is more self-seeking than the aspiration for eternal life, and with genetic engineering,
it could certainly become a possibility.
Genetic engineering is indeed a large step into the future of mankind, and it is not
necessarily a bad thing. Lives will be saved, diseases will be cured, and new information
will be available for all who need it. It is society's choice, however, whether to
embrace it and continue, or look deeper into the future consequences before rushing
headlong into the unknown. We hold the future in our hands and do not want to look back
upon our creations as Victor Frankenstein did: "I ardently wished to extinguish that life
which I had so thoughtlessly bestowed" (Shelley, 1991, p. 76). The future is now, and it
is society's task to view the prejudicial and ethical issues concerning genetic
engineering carefully. "We have landed on the naked shores of the brave new world, and we
need to plan for the future we wish to create" (Bier, 2001, p. 78).
Bibliography
References
Baker, Catherine. (2001, October 10). Exploring the issues raised by genetic research. 
"Your Genes, Your Choices." Retrieved October 10, 2001 from the World Wide 
Web: http://www.ehrweb.aaas.org/her/books/index.html 
Bier, E. (2001). "The Future of Biology and Man." In T. Clayton (Ed.), Exploring 
Human Identity (5th ed.) (pp. 60-81). Copley Custom Publishing Group, Acton, MA. 
Darwin, C. (2001). Excerpts from the writings of Charles Darwin: "The Origin of 
Species and The Descent of Man." J. Wagner (Ed.) found at
http://www.zoo.uib.no/classics/origin.html and
http://www.zoo.uib.no/classics/descent.html
Egan, G. (2001). "The Extra." In T. Clayton (Ed.), Exploring Human Identity (5th ed.) 
(pp. 60-81). Copley Custom Publishing Group, Acton, MA.
Gattaca, screenplay by Andrew M. Niccol.
Hobbes, T. (2001). "from Leviathan." In T. Clayton (Ed.), Exploring Human Identity 
(5th ed.) (pp. 60-81). Copley Custom Publishing Group, Acton, MA.
Shelley, M. (1991). Frankenstein. New York: Bantam Books.
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