M. Cathleen Kaveny
David E. Guinn (ed.)
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- September 2006
- ISBN:
- 9780195178739
- eISBN:
- 9780199784943
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0195178734.003.0011
- Subject:
- Religion, Philosophy of Religion
The report produced by the National Bioethics Advisory Commission at the request of President Bill Clinton, titled Cloning Human Beings, provides a good example of the two-pronged approach to ...
More
The report produced by the National Bioethics Advisory Commission at the request of President Bill Clinton, titled Cloning Human Beings, provides a good example of the two-pronged approach to religion in bioethics. The report merits careful scrutiny precisely because of the deftness with which it appears to negotiate the thorny questions surrounding the role of religion in public policy. Analysis of the structure, arguments, and rhetoric of the report reveals the theoretical and practical inadequacy of the currently reigning two-pronged approach to the role of religious perspectives in the field of bioethics.Less
The report produced by the National Bioethics Advisory Commission at the request of President Bill Clinton, titled Cloning Human Beings, provides a good example of the two-pronged approach to religion in bioethics. The report merits careful scrutiny precisely because of the deftness with which it appears to negotiate the thorny questions surrounding the role of religion in public policy. Analysis of the structure, arguments, and rhetoric of the report reveals the theoretical and practical inadequacy of the currently reigning two-pronged approach to the role of religious perspectives in the field of bioethics.
Lydia M.D. Dugdale (ed.)
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- January 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780262029124
- eISBN:
- 9780262328579
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- The MIT Press
- DOI:
- 10.7551/mitpress/9780262029124.001.0001
- Subject:
- Biology, Bioethics
Most of us are generally ill-equipped for dying. Today, we neither see death nor prepare for it. But this has not always been the case. In the early fifteenth century, the Catholic Church published ...
More
Most of us are generally ill-equipped for dying. Today, we neither see death nor prepare for it. But this has not always been the case. In the early fifteenth century, the Catholic Church published the Ars moriendi texts, which established prayers and practices for an art of dying. In the twenty-first century, physicians rely on procedures and protocols for the efficient management of hospitalized patients. How might we recapture an art of dying that facilitates our dying well? In this book, physicians, philosophers, and theologians attempt to articulate a bioethical framework for dying well in a secularized, diverse society. Contributors discuss such topics as the acceptance of human finitude; the role of hospice and palliative medicine; spiritual preparation for death; and the relationship between community and individual autonomy. They also consider special cases, including children, elderly patients with dementia, and those suffering from AIDS in the early years of the epidemic, when doctors could do little more than accompany their patients in humble solidarity. These chapters make the case that only a robust bioethics—one that could foster both the contemplation of finitude and the cultivation of community–could bring about a modern art of dying well.Less
Most of us are generally ill-equipped for dying. Today, we neither see death nor prepare for it. But this has not always been the case. In the early fifteenth century, the Catholic Church published the Ars moriendi texts, which established prayers and practices for an art of dying. In the twenty-first century, physicians rely on procedures and protocols for the efficient management of hospitalized patients. How might we recapture an art of dying that facilitates our dying well? In this book, physicians, philosophers, and theologians attempt to articulate a bioethical framework for dying well in a secularized, diverse society. Contributors discuss such topics as the acceptance of human finitude; the role of hospice and palliative medicine; spiritual preparation for death; and the relationship between community and individual autonomy. They also consider special cases, including children, elderly patients with dementia, and those suffering from AIDS in the early years of the epidemic, when doctors could do little more than accompany their patients in humble solidarity. These chapters make the case that only a robust bioethics—one that could foster both the contemplation of finitude and the cultivation of community–could bring about a modern art of dying well.
J. Benjamin Hurlbut
- Published in print:
- 2017
- Published Online:
- January 2019
- ISBN:
- 9780231179546
- eISBN:
- 9780231542913
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Columbia University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7312/columbia/9780231179546.001.0001
- Subject:
- Biology, Bioethics
Human embryo research touches upon strongly felt moral convictions, and it raises such deep questions about the promise and perils of scientific progress that debate over its development has become a ...
More
Human embryo research touches upon strongly felt moral convictions, and it raises such deep questions about the promise and perils of scientific progress that debate over its development has become a moral and political imperative. From in vitro fertilization to embryonic stem cell research, cloning, and gene editing, Americans have repeatedly struggled with how to define the moral status of the human embryo, whether to limit its experimental uses, and how to contend with sharply divided public moral perspectives on governing science. Experiments in Democracy presents a history of American debates over human embryo research from the late 1960s to the present, exploring their crucial role in shaping norms, practices, and institutions of deliberation governing the ethical challenges of modern bioscience. J. Benjamin Hurlbut details how scientists, bioethicists, policymakers, and other public figures have attempted to answer a question of great consequence: how should the public reason about aspects of science and technology that effect fundamental dimensions of human life? Through a study of one of the most significant science policy controversies in the history of the United States, Experiments in Democracy paints a portrait of the complex relationship between science and democracy, and of U.S. society's evolving approaches to evaluating and governing science's most challenging breakthroughs.Less
Human embryo research touches upon strongly felt moral convictions, and it raises such deep questions about the promise and perils of scientific progress that debate over its development has become a moral and political imperative. From in vitro fertilization to embryonic stem cell research, cloning, and gene editing, Americans have repeatedly struggled with how to define the moral status of the human embryo, whether to limit its experimental uses, and how to contend with sharply divided public moral perspectives on governing science. Experiments in Democracy presents a history of American debates over human embryo research from the late 1960s to the present, exploring their crucial role in shaping norms, practices, and institutions of deliberation governing the ethical challenges of modern bioscience. J. Benjamin Hurlbut details how scientists, bioethicists, policymakers, and other public figures have attempted to answer a question of great consequence: how should the public reason about aspects of science and technology that effect fundamental dimensions of human life? Through a study of one of the most significant science policy controversies in the history of the United States, Experiments in Democracy paints a portrait of the complex relationship between science and democracy, and of U.S. society's evolving approaches to evaluating and governing science's most challenging breakthroughs.
Helga Nowotny and Giuseppe Testa
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- January 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780262014939
- eISBN:
- 9780262295802
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- The MIT Press
- DOI:
- 10.7551/mitpress/9780262014939.001.0001
- Subject:
- Biology, Evolutionary Biology / Genetics
This book charts the mutual reconfiguration between scientific and social innovations in and around the molecular life sciences. Today’s biology is making visible what was once invisible. It parses ...
More
This book charts the mutual reconfiguration between scientific and social innovations in and around the molecular life sciences. Today’s biology is making visible what was once invisible. It parses life into new units of sense-making and reassembles them into new forms: from genes to clones, from embryonic stages to the building-blocks of synthetic biology. Yet, extracted from their scientific and social context and turned into mobile resources, technical and discursive alike, these new forms of life become not only visible but indeed “naked”: ready to assume an – illusory - essential status and thereby take on multiple values and meanings as they pass from labs to courts, from patent offices to parliaments – and back. Our goal is to cast a new gaze on these dramatic advances in the life sciences by probing their mutual interaction with equally dramatic re-configurations in the political texture of our societies. To this end, we focus on paradigmatic encounters between scientific and social ingenuity, from assisted reproduction through personalized medicine to genetic sports doping. We bring into relief surprising continuities as well as radical discontinuities between innovation and tradition. On this basis we then trace how, when social arrangements appear disrupted, advances in the life sciences combine with “human technologies”–the law, governance, and ethics– to stabilize or innovate social order. This brings us to conclude that the task of institutions in the molecular age is to enable pluralism by carving a legitimate space for experimentation with new forms of biological life as well as with new forms of social life. Less
This book charts the mutual reconfiguration between scientific and social innovations in and around the molecular life sciences. Today’s biology is making visible what was once invisible. It parses life into new units of sense-making and reassembles them into new forms: from genes to clones, from embryonic stages to the building-blocks of synthetic biology. Yet, extracted from their scientific and social context and turned into mobile resources, technical and discursive alike, these new forms of life become not only visible but indeed “naked”: ready to assume an – illusory - essential status and thereby take on multiple values and meanings as they pass from labs to courts, from patent offices to parliaments – and back. Our goal is to cast a new gaze on these dramatic advances in the life sciences by probing their mutual interaction with equally dramatic re-configurations in the political texture of our societies. To this end, we focus on paradigmatic encounters between scientific and social ingenuity, from assisted reproduction through personalized medicine to genetic sports doping. We bring into relief surprising continuities as well as radical discontinuities between innovation and tradition. On this basis we then trace how, when social arrangements appear disrupted, advances in the life sciences combine with “human technologies”–the law, governance, and ethics– to stabilize or innovate social order. This brings us to conclude that the task of institutions in the molecular age is to enable pluralism by carving a legitimate space for experimentation with new forms of biological life as well as with new forms of social life.
John Coggon, Sarah Chan, Soren Holme, and Thomasine Kushner (eds)
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- January 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780719096235
- eISBN:
- 9781781708392
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Manchester University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7228/manchester/9780719096235.001.0001
- Subject:
- Society and Culture, Ethical Issues and Debates
From Reason to Practice in Bioethics: An Anthology Dedicated to the Works of John Harris brings together original contributions from some of the world’s leading scholars in the field of bioethics. ...
More
From Reason to Practice in Bioethics: An Anthology Dedicated to the Works of John Harris brings together original contributions from some of the world’s leading scholars in the field of bioethics. With a particular focus on, and critical engagement with, the influential work of Professor John Harris, the book provides a detailed exploration of some of the most interesting and challenging philosophical and practical questions raised in bioethics. The book’s broad range of chapters make it a useful resource for students, scholars, and practitioners interested in the field of bioethics, and the relationship between philosophical and practical ethics. The range of contributors and topics afford the book a wide international interest.Less
From Reason to Practice in Bioethics: An Anthology Dedicated to the Works of John Harris brings together original contributions from some of the world’s leading scholars in the field of bioethics. With a particular focus on, and critical engagement with, the influential work of Professor John Harris, the book provides a detailed exploration of some of the most interesting and challenging philosophical and practical questions raised in bioethics. The book’s broad range of chapters make it a useful resource for students, scholars, and practitioners interested in the field of bioethics, and the relationship between philosophical and practical ethics. The range of contributors and topics afford the book a wide international interest.
Roger Brownsword
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- January 2009
- ISBN:
- 9780199545520
- eISBN:
- 9780191721113
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199545520.003.0002
- Subject:
- Law, Medical Law
This chapter is divided into four parts. The first part considers the view of ethics presented in the Nuffield Council on Bioethics' report, ‘Critical Care Decisions in Fetal and Neonatal Medicine: ...
More
This chapter is divided into four parts. The first part considers the view of ethics presented in the Nuffield Council on Bioethics' report, ‘Critical Care Decisions in Fetal and Neonatal Medicine: Ethical Issues’. According to this view, bioethics has a dual function. On the one hand, it is a critical discipline that ‘investigates the underlying reasons or justifications for specific moral beliefs or moral codes’. On the other hand, bioethics should also seek out platforms and pockets of moral convergence and consensus. The second part sketches the author's view from a particular rights-led legal idealist perspective. The third part considers the nature of the plurality that a critical bioethics will construct, the extent to which that operates against consensus, and the scope for bioethics to play a practically useful role. Finally, some ways in which the critical capacity of bioethics might be further deployed are suggested. It is argued that bioethics needs to transcend the plurality by developing a critical understanding of moral community itself.Less
This chapter is divided into four parts. The first part considers the view of ethics presented in the Nuffield Council on Bioethics' report, ‘Critical Care Decisions in Fetal and Neonatal Medicine: Ethical Issues’. According to this view, bioethics has a dual function. On the one hand, it is a critical discipline that ‘investigates the underlying reasons or justifications for specific moral beliefs or moral codes’. On the other hand, bioethics should also seek out platforms and pockets of moral convergence and consensus. The second part sketches the author's view from a particular rights-led legal idealist perspective. The third part considers the nature of the plurality that a critical bioethics will construct, the extent to which that operates against consensus, and the scope for bioethics to play a practically useful role. Finally, some ways in which the critical capacity of bioethics might be further deployed are suggested. It is argued that bioethics needs to transcend the plurality by developing a critical understanding of moral community itself.
Richard Ashcroft
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- January 2009
- ISBN:
- 9780199545520
- eISBN:
- 9780191721113
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199545520.003.0003
- Subject:
- Law, Medical Law
This chapter examines the relationship between bioethics and humans. The first part of the chapter briefly presents the debate over the value of the UNESCO Universal Declaration on Bioethics and ...
More
This chapter examines the relationship between bioethics and humans. The first part of the chapter briefly presents the debate over the value of the UNESCO Universal Declaration on Bioethics and Human Rights. The second part proposes an account of the intellectual, sociological, and institutional differences between advocates of bioethical and human rights approaches to moral and social issues in health, medicine, and the life sciences. The third part discusses recent arguments that bioethics can be subsumed under the human rights umbrella. Finally, the chapter suggests some issues for future work on the relationship between human rights and bioethics.Less
This chapter examines the relationship between bioethics and humans. The first part of the chapter briefly presents the debate over the value of the UNESCO Universal Declaration on Bioethics and Human Rights. The second part proposes an account of the intellectual, sociological, and institutional differences between advocates of bioethical and human rights approaches to moral and social issues in health, medicine, and the life sciences. The third part discusses recent arguments that bioethics can be subsumed under the human rights umbrella. Finally, the chapter suggests some issues for future work on the relationship between human rights and bioethics.
Roger Brownsword
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- January 2009
- ISBN:
- 9780199276806
- eISBN:
- 9780191707605
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199276806.003.0002
- Subject:
- Law, Intellectual Property, IT, and Media Law
This chapter begins with a discussion of the Universal Declaration on Bioethics and Human Rights. It then identifies and maps three leading bioethical positions, each of which is compressed within ...
More
This chapter begins with a discussion of the Universal Declaration on Bioethics and Human Rights. It then identifies and maps three leading bioethical positions, each of which is compressed within the declaration. These positions, represented as the ‘bioethical triangle’, generate a background ethical plurality that sets the scene for regulators. The chapter comments on the increasingly important idea of human dignity, an idea which features strongly at two points of the bioethical triangle. Two illustrative applications of the bioethical triangle are discussed: the first concerns the regulation of (human embryonic) stem cell research and therapeutic cloning; the second involves the recognition of proprietary entitlements in relation to human tissue and (detached) body parts.Less
This chapter begins with a discussion of the Universal Declaration on Bioethics and Human Rights. It then identifies and maps three leading bioethical positions, each of which is compressed within the declaration. These positions, represented as the ‘bioethical triangle’, generate a background ethical plurality that sets the scene for regulators. The chapter comments on the increasingly important idea of human dignity, an idea which features strongly at two points of the bioethical triangle. Two illustrative applications of the bioethical triangle are discussed: the first concerns the regulation of (human embryonic) stem cell research and therapeutic cloning; the second involves the recognition of proprietary entitlements in relation to human tissue and (detached) body parts.
Renée C. Fox and Judith P. Swazey
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780195365559
- eISBN:
- 9780199851881
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195365559.003.0006
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Philosophy of Science
Bioethics has found its place in the United States with succeeding events that celebrate its birth, the founding of bioethics institutions, deeper research and development, and prominent figures in ...
More
Bioethics has found its place in the United States with succeeding events that celebrate its birth, the founding of bioethics institutions, deeper research and development, and prominent figures in the field. This chapter presents two major achievements in bioethics: the Birth of Bioethics conference and the Belmont Revisited conference, to explore the relation or presence of culture in bioethics.Less
Bioethics has found its place in the United States with succeeding events that celebrate its birth, the founding of bioethics institutions, deeper research and development, and prominent figures in the field. This chapter presents two major achievements in bioethics: the Birth of Bioethics conference and the Belmont Revisited conference, to explore the relation or presence of culture in bioethics.
John McMillan
- Published in print:
- 2018
- Published Online:
- December 2018
- ISBN:
- 9780199603756
- eISBN:
- 9780191862885
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780199603756.001.0001
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Moral Philosophy, Philosophy of Science
Bioethics has made a mistake about its methods, and this has led not only to too much theorizing, but also fragmentation within bioethics. The unhelpful disputes between those who think bioethics ...
More
Bioethics has made a mistake about its methods, and this has led not only to too much theorizing, but also fragmentation within bioethics. The unhelpful disputes between those who think bioethics needs to be more philosophical, more sociological, more clinical or more empirical, continue. While each of these claims will have some point, they obscure what should be common to all instances of bioethics. Moreover, they provide another phantom that can lead newcomers to bioethics down blind alleyways stalked by bristling sociologists and philosophers. The method common to all bioethics is bringing moral reason to bear upon ethical issues, and it is more accurate and productive to clarify what this involves than to stake out a methodological patch that shows why one discipline is the most important. This book develops an account of the nature of bioethics and then explains how a number of methodological spectres have obstructed bioethics becoming what it should. The final part of this book explains how moral reason can be brought to bear upon practical issues via an ‘empirical, Socratic’ approach.Less
Bioethics has made a mistake about its methods, and this has led not only to too much theorizing, but also fragmentation within bioethics. The unhelpful disputes between those who think bioethics needs to be more philosophical, more sociological, more clinical or more empirical, continue. While each of these claims will have some point, they obscure what should be common to all instances of bioethics. Moreover, they provide another phantom that can lead newcomers to bioethics down blind alleyways stalked by bristling sociologists and philosophers. The method common to all bioethics is bringing moral reason to bear upon ethical issues, and it is more accurate and productive to clarify what this involves than to stake out a methodological patch that shows why one discipline is the most important. This book develops an account of the nature of bioethics and then explains how a number of methodological spectres have obstructed bioethics becoming what it should. The final part of this book explains how moral reason can be brought to bear upon practical issues via an ‘empirical, Socratic’ approach.
Mary Ann Cohen and Sharon M. Batista
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- November 2020
- ISBN:
- 9780195372571
- eISBN:
- 9780197562666
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780195372571.003.0017
- Subject:
- Clinical Medicine and Allied Health, Psychiatry
From confidentiality, contact notification, and disclosure to decisional capacity, advance directives, and end-of-life care, AIDS presents special bioethical ...
More
From confidentiality, contact notification, and disclosure to decisional capacity, advance directives, and end-of-life care, AIDS presents special bioethical challenges to caregivers. Stigma, fear of rejection, and discrimination play significant roles in the bioethical aspects of the care of persons with HIV and AIDS. As a consequence, caregivers are often faced with bioethical dilemmas and conflicts. While many persons with HIV and AIDS are comfortable with disclosure to partners and family members, some persons with HIV refuse to disclose their serostatus even to sexual partners. Many persons with HIV and AIDS are able, especially with support, to come to safer and healthier decisions about disclosure and about their health and medical care. In this chapter, we will explore these dilemmas and provide suggestions on how to deal with them. Strategies for dealing with ethical dilemmas, determining decisional capacity, addressing end-of-life issues, and maintaining confidentiality in the care of persons with HIV and AIDS are also presented. To begin a discussion of ethics as applied to clinical care, it is important to define the terms used in this context. The definitions of the terms used in this chapter are based not only on formal definitions as published in bioethics texts and articles but also their use in common medical practice. Table 13.1 provides definitions of some of the bioethics terms that are relevant to this discussion. Within the doctor–patient relationship, physicians are expected to understand and relate to their patients as their own primary decision-makers. Patients are presumed to be autonomous and to have decisional capacity. However, at times, decisional capacity can be called into question, such as when a medical condition impairs the patient’s capacity to understand the illness or results in impaired judgment. Since autonomy is such a protected right, multiple criteria must be fulfilled in order to substitute another person’s judgment for that of the patient in cases where the patient is unable to make an appropriate decision for him- or herself. This assessment is called an assessment for capacity and is specific for each decision—a separate assessment must be performed for each decision to be made if the patient’s decision-making ability is under question.
Less
From confidentiality, contact notification, and disclosure to decisional capacity, advance directives, and end-of-life care, AIDS presents special bioethical challenges to caregivers. Stigma, fear of rejection, and discrimination play significant roles in the bioethical aspects of the care of persons with HIV and AIDS. As a consequence, caregivers are often faced with bioethical dilemmas and conflicts. While many persons with HIV and AIDS are comfortable with disclosure to partners and family members, some persons with HIV refuse to disclose their serostatus even to sexual partners. Many persons with HIV and AIDS are able, especially with support, to come to safer and healthier decisions about disclosure and about their health and medical care. In this chapter, we will explore these dilemmas and provide suggestions on how to deal with them. Strategies for dealing with ethical dilemmas, determining decisional capacity, addressing end-of-life issues, and maintaining confidentiality in the care of persons with HIV and AIDS are also presented. To begin a discussion of ethics as applied to clinical care, it is important to define the terms used in this context. The definitions of the terms used in this chapter are based not only on formal definitions as published in bioethics texts and articles but also their use in common medical practice. Table 13.1 provides definitions of some of the bioethics terms that are relevant to this discussion. Within the doctor–patient relationship, physicians are expected to understand and relate to their patients as their own primary decision-makers. Patients are presumed to be autonomous and to have decisional capacity. However, at times, decisional capacity can be called into question, such as when a medical condition impairs the patient’s capacity to understand the illness or results in impaired judgment. Since autonomy is such a protected right, multiple criteria must be fulfilled in order to substitute another person’s judgment for that of the patient in cases where the patient is unable to make an appropriate decision for him- or herself. This assessment is called an assessment for capacity and is specific for each decision—a separate assessment must be performed for each decision to be made if the patient’s decision-making ability is under question.
Mike Fortun
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- March 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780520247505
- eISBN:
- 9780520942615
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of California Press
- DOI:
- 10.1525/california/9780520247505.003.0011
- Subject:
- Biology, Evolutionary Biology / Genetics
In a February 1999 article, Jeffrey Kahn of the University of Minnesota's Center for Bioethics commented that deCODE Genetics negotiated the right to Iceland's genome for $200 million, which seemed, ...
More
In a February 1999 article, Jeffrey Kahn of the University of Minnesota's Center for Bioethics commented that deCODE Genetics negotiated the right to Iceland's genome for $200 million, which seemed, thought Kahn, “like a bargain basement price.” But Kahn asked whether a country should sell its people's genetic information. Distance more than complicity makes it necessary to state that in the summer of 1999 the “democratic” government of Iceland abruptly dissolved its National Bioethics Committee—whose members had been nominated by the major Icelandic biomedical institutions and professional associations, and which was advocating widely accepted practices of informed consent that deCODE believed too restrictive—and replaced the committee with a government-appointed set of members who proved more amenable to deCODE's interests.Less
In a February 1999 article, Jeffrey Kahn of the University of Minnesota's Center for Bioethics commented that deCODE Genetics negotiated the right to Iceland's genome for $200 million, which seemed, thought Kahn, “like a bargain basement price.” But Kahn asked whether a country should sell its people's genetic information. Distance more than complicity makes it necessary to state that in the summer of 1999 the “democratic” government of Iceland abruptly dissolved its National Bioethics Committee—whose members had been nominated by the major Icelandic biomedical institutions and professional associations, and which was advocating widely accepted practices of informed consent that deCODE believed too restrictive—and replaced the committee with a government-appointed set of members who proved more amenable to deCODE's interests.
Kelly Oliver
- Published in print:
- 2013
- Published Online:
- January 2014
- ISBN:
- 9780823251087
- eISBN:
- 9780823253036
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Fordham University Press
- DOI:
- 10.5422/fordham/9780823251087.003.0006
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Moral Philosophy
I use the deconstruction of the nature-culture dichotomy, with its attendant opposition between grown and made, to challenge debates in bioethics over cloning. Indeed, deconstructing the central ...
More
I use the deconstruction of the nature-culture dichotomy, with its attendant opposition between grown and made, to challenge debates in bioethics over cloning. Indeed, deconstructing the central terms assumed in these debates can change the very framework of them. These debates are currently dominated by the liberal notion of an autonomous individual with free choice, precisely the notion of the sovereign subject that comes under scrutiny in Derrida's later work. Taking John Harris and Jürgen Habermas as representatives of two sides in debates over genetic engineering and cloning, I show how deconstruction unsettles both. In addition, I consider Derrida's own views on cloning and how they might help us navigate complex ethical issues raised by new technologies of reproduction.Less
I use the deconstruction of the nature-culture dichotomy, with its attendant opposition between grown and made, to challenge debates in bioethics over cloning. Indeed, deconstructing the central terms assumed in these debates can change the very framework of them. These debates are currently dominated by the liberal notion of an autonomous individual with free choice, precisely the notion of the sovereign subject that comes under scrutiny in Derrida's later work. Taking John Harris and Jürgen Habermas as representatives of two sides in debates over genetic engineering and cloning, I show how deconstruction unsettles both. In addition, I consider Derrida's own views on cloning and how they might help us navigate complex ethical issues raised by new technologies of reproduction.
J. Paul Narkunas
- Published in print:
- 2018
- Published Online:
- January 2019
- ISBN:
- 9780823280308
- eISBN:
- 9780823281534
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Fordham University Press
- DOI:
- 10.5422/fordham/9780823280308.003.0009
- Subject:
- Political Science, Political Theory
Kazuo Ishiguro’s 2005 novel Never Let Me Go follows a group of genetic clones who are created as wards of the British health service because they serve a utilitarian function: They are manufactured ...
More
Kazuo Ishiguro’s 2005 novel Never Let Me Go follows a group of genetic clones who are created as wards of the British health service because they serve a utilitarian function: They are manufactured for the purpose of having their vital organs harvested until their death. The world he envisions of a grouping of humans reproduced to be a living warehouse of organs while certainly dreadful is nowhere near as horrific as when organ transplantation and global uneven development intersect in our neoliberal present. Ishiguro shows how humans who view their humanity instrumentally expedite a world that is ready to slice them into shares, monetizing all the parts along the way. Through Ishiguro’s text, I diagnose the reification of the body as an aggregation of fungible body parts. Human reification challenges bioethicists and cultural critics alike to reflect on how human dignity and bodily integrity no longer serve as barriers for marking the species-limit due to new advances in biotechnology.Less
Kazuo Ishiguro’s 2005 novel Never Let Me Go follows a group of genetic clones who are created as wards of the British health service because they serve a utilitarian function: They are manufactured for the purpose of having their vital organs harvested until their death. The world he envisions of a grouping of humans reproduced to be a living warehouse of organs while certainly dreadful is nowhere near as horrific as when organ transplantation and global uneven development intersect in our neoliberal present. Ishiguro shows how humans who view their humanity instrumentally expedite a world that is ready to slice them into shares, monetizing all the parts along the way. Through Ishiguro’s text, I diagnose the reification of the body as an aggregation of fungible body parts. Human reification challenges bioethicists and cultural critics alike to reflect on how human dignity and bodily integrity no longer serve as barriers for marking the species-limit due to new advances in biotechnology.
Dominic A. Sisti, Arthur L. Caplan, and Hila Rimon-Greenspan (eds)
- Published in print:
- 2013
- Published Online:
- May 2014
- ISBN:
- 9780262019682
- eISBN:
- 9780262317245
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- The MIT Press
- DOI:
- 10.7551/mitpress/9780262019682.001.0001
- Subject:
- Biology, Bioethics
This book discusses some of the most critical ethical issues in mental health care today, including the moral dimensions of addiction, patient autonomy and compulsory treatment, privacy and ...
More
This book discusses some of the most critical ethical issues in mental health care today, including the moral dimensions of addiction, patient autonomy and compulsory treatment, privacy and confidentiality, and the definition of mental illness itself. Although debates over these issues are ongoing, there are few comprehensive resources for addressing such dilemmas in the practice of psychology, psychiatry, social work, and other behavioral and mental health care professions. This book meets that need, providing foundational background for undergraduate, graduate, and professional courses. Topics include central questions such as evolving views of the morality and pathology of deviant behavior; patient competence and the decision to refuse treatment; recognizing and treating people who have suffered trauma; addiction as illness; the therapist’s responsibility to report dangerousness despite patient confidentiality; and boundaries for the therapist’s interaction with patients.Less
This book discusses some of the most critical ethical issues in mental health care today, including the moral dimensions of addiction, patient autonomy and compulsory treatment, privacy and confidentiality, and the definition of mental illness itself. Although debates over these issues are ongoing, there are few comprehensive resources for addressing such dilemmas in the practice of psychology, psychiatry, social work, and other behavioral and mental health care professions. This book meets that need, providing foundational background for undergraduate, graduate, and professional courses. Topics include central questions such as evolving views of the morality and pathology of deviant behavior; patient competence and the decision to refuse treatment; recognizing and treating people who have suffered trauma; addiction as illness; the therapist’s responsibility to report dangerousness despite patient confidentiality; and boundaries for the therapist’s interaction with patients.
Bruno Perreau
- Published in print:
- 2014
- Published Online:
- January 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780262027229
- eISBN:
- 9780262323383
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- The MIT Press
- DOI:
- 10.7551/mitpress/9780262027229.001.0001
- Subject:
- Political Science, Public Policy
The Politics of Adoption argues that adoption is not a mere family question. It conveys a model of citizenship. Policies, jurisprudence, and social work define an ideal image of parenthood in the ...
More
The Politics of Adoption argues that adoption is not a mere family question. It conveys a model of citizenship. Policies, jurisprudence, and social work define an ideal image of parenthood in the hope to better control the making of future citizens. In a context of laws and debates on bioethics, this model is more and more infused with representations of the fertile body. Adoptive parents are thus expected to behave as if they were biological parents. The Politics of Adoption maintains that gay marriage and adoption were controversial in Francebecausethey questioned the epistemological system that articulates citizenship and procreation, a system widely shared across the political spectrum. The Politics of Adoption also shows that adoption works as a metaphor for national belonging and frames debates and policy-making on immigration. Last, The Politics of Adoption evidences a new type of governance, based on rhetoric of risk, and highly monitored models of social behaviors, to which citizens are expected to voluntarily identify. The Politics of Adoptionincludes a study of parliamentary debates since 1945, as well as French and European case law. It follows the emergence of the concept of “parenting” in the mass media. It also throws light on social work by developing a discursive analysis of the various types of justification deployed by agents of the Child Social Welfare Agency when accrediting a parent for adoption.Less
The Politics of Adoption argues that adoption is not a mere family question. It conveys a model of citizenship. Policies, jurisprudence, and social work define an ideal image of parenthood in the hope to better control the making of future citizens. In a context of laws and debates on bioethics, this model is more and more infused with representations of the fertile body. Adoptive parents are thus expected to behave as if they were biological parents. The Politics of Adoption maintains that gay marriage and adoption were controversial in Francebecausethey questioned the epistemological system that articulates citizenship and procreation, a system widely shared across the political spectrum. The Politics of Adoption also shows that adoption works as a metaphor for national belonging and frames debates and policy-making on immigration. Last, The Politics of Adoption evidences a new type of governance, based on rhetoric of risk, and highly monitored models of social behaviors, to which citizens are expected to voluntarily identify. The Politics of Adoptionincludes a study of parliamentary debates since 1945, as well as French and European case law. It follows the emergence of the concept of “parenting” in the mass media. It also throws light on social work by developing a discursive analysis of the various types of justification deployed by agents of the Child Social Welfare Agency when accrediting a parent for adoption.
James Tabery
- Published in print:
- 2014
- Published Online:
- January 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780262027373
- eISBN:
- 9780262324144
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- The MIT Press
- DOI:
- 10.7551/mitpress/9780262027373.001.0001
- Subject:
- History, History of Science, Technology, and Medicine
If everyone now agrees that human traits arise not from nature or nurture but from the interaction of nature and nurture, then why does the “nature versus nurture” debate persist? In Beyond Versus, ...
More
If everyone now agrees that human traits arise not from nature or nurture but from the interaction of nature and nurture, then why does the “nature versus nurture” debate persist? In Beyond Versus, James Tabery argues that the persistence stems from a century-long struggle to understand the interaction of nature and nurture—a struggle to define what the interaction of nature and nurture is, how it should be investigated, and what counts as evidence for it. Tabery tells the story of the past, takes stock of the present, and considers the future of research on the interaction of nature and nurture. From the eugenics controversy of the 1930s regarding sterilization, to the IQ controversy of the 1970s in behaviour genetics regarding race, to the 21st century debate over the causes of depression, Tabery argues that the polarization in these discussions can be attributed to what he calls an “explanatory divide”—a disagreement over how explanation works in science, which in turn has created two very different concepts of interaction. Drawing on recent developments in the philosophy of science, Tabery then offers a way to integratively bridge this explanatory divide and integratively bridge these different concepts. Looking to the future, Tabery evaluates the bioethical issues that surround genetic testing (in the form of whole genome sequencing) for genes implicated in interactions of nature and nurture, pointing to what the future does (and does not) hold for a science that continues to make headlines and raise controversy.Less
If everyone now agrees that human traits arise not from nature or nurture but from the interaction of nature and nurture, then why does the “nature versus nurture” debate persist? In Beyond Versus, James Tabery argues that the persistence stems from a century-long struggle to understand the interaction of nature and nurture—a struggle to define what the interaction of nature and nurture is, how it should be investigated, and what counts as evidence for it. Tabery tells the story of the past, takes stock of the present, and considers the future of research on the interaction of nature and nurture. From the eugenics controversy of the 1930s regarding sterilization, to the IQ controversy of the 1970s in behaviour genetics regarding race, to the 21st century debate over the causes of depression, Tabery argues that the polarization in these discussions can be attributed to what he calls an “explanatory divide”—a disagreement over how explanation works in science, which in turn has created two very different concepts of interaction. Drawing on recent developments in the philosophy of science, Tabery then offers a way to integratively bridge this explanatory divide and integratively bridge these different concepts. Looking to the future, Tabery evaluates the bioethical issues that surround genetic testing (in the form of whole genome sequencing) for genes implicated in interactions of nature and nurture, pointing to what the future does (and does not) hold for a science that continues to make headlines and raise controversy.
Lydia S. Dugdale
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- January 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780262029124
- eISBN:
- 9780262328579
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- The MIT Press
- DOI:
- 10.7551/mitpress/9780262029124.003.0001
- Subject:
- Biology, Bioethics
At various points throughout history, for reasons of plague, pestilence, and war, death has dominated human consciousness. This was especially apparent during the Bubonic Plague of the fourteenth ...
More
At various points throughout history, for reasons of plague, pestilence, and war, death has dominated human consciousness. This was especially apparent during the Bubonic Plague of the fourteenth century, which claimed the lives of up to two-thirds of Europeans. The Catholic Church responded by issuing texts, collectively known as the Ars moriendi, to guide the laity in its preparation for death. These books circulated widely throughout Europe, and were adopted and modified by both the religious and the non-religious, always with a view to preparing to die well. But as late nineteenth century Western society grew increasingly concerned with the art of living well, practices concerned with dying were largely forgotten or neglected, and death became medicalized. The field of bioethics has, since its earliest days, debated end-of-life issues, but it has not definitively aided the broader public in preparing for death. This book looks to bioethics to frame a modern Ars moriendi – one that can aid an aging, plural population to prepare for death and to support its members through the dying process.Less
At various points throughout history, for reasons of plague, pestilence, and war, death has dominated human consciousness. This was especially apparent during the Bubonic Plague of the fourteenth century, which claimed the lives of up to two-thirds of Europeans. The Catholic Church responded by issuing texts, collectively known as the Ars moriendi, to guide the laity in its preparation for death. These books circulated widely throughout Europe, and were adopted and modified by both the religious and the non-religious, always with a view to preparing to die well. But as late nineteenth century Western society grew increasingly concerned with the art of living well, practices concerned with dying were largely forgotten or neglected, and death became medicalized. The field of bioethics has, since its earliest days, debated end-of-life issues, but it has not definitively aided the broader public in preparing for death. This book looks to bioethics to frame a modern Ars moriendi – one that can aid an aging, plural population to prepare for death and to support its members through the dying process.
Lydia S. Dugdale
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- January 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780262029124
- eISBN:
- 9780262328579
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- The MIT Press
- DOI:
- 10.7551/mitpress/9780262029124.003.0011
- Subject:
- Biology, Bioethics
In the concluding chapter, the volume editor Lydia Dugdale collects the themes that emerge from the preceding chapters and shows how together they might contribute to the rediscovery of an art of ...
More
In the concluding chapter, the volume editor Lydia Dugdale collects the themes that emerge from the preceding chapters and shows how together they might contribute to the rediscovery of an art of dying. She responds to the concerns raised by Lysaught in chapter 5, and, after reconsidering whether bioethics is in fact suited to the task, concludes that only a very robust bioethics could foster both the contemplation of finitude and the cultivation of community that would be necessary for a present-day Ars moriendi. Returning to the rich complexities of finitude and community, Dugdale outlines the obstacles that impede progress. She concludes by identifying the areas that remain to be explored, recognizing that the contours of this exploration must themselves continue to shift as the needs of dying generations change.Less
In the concluding chapter, the volume editor Lydia Dugdale collects the themes that emerge from the preceding chapters and shows how together they might contribute to the rediscovery of an art of dying. She responds to the concerns raised by Lysaught in chapter 5, and, after reconsidering whether bioethics is in fact suited to the task, concludes that only a very robust bioethics could foster both the contemplation of finitude and the cultivation of community that would be necessary for a present-day Ars moriendi. Returning to the rich complexities of finitude and community, Dugdale outlines the obstacles that impede progress. She concludes by identifying the areas that remain to be explored, recognizing that the contours of this exploration must themselves continue to shift as the needs of dying generations change.
James Tabery
- Published in print:
- 2014
- Published Online:
- January 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780262027373
- eISBN:
- 9780262324144
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- The MIT Press
- DOI:
- 10.7551/mitpress/9780262027373.003.0007
- Subject:
- History, History of Science, Technology, and Medicine
In 2002, scientists were reported to have discovered a “genetic predisposition to violence” in the form of the MAOA gene (monoamine oxidase A). Bioethicists reflecting on the discovery recommended ...
More
In 2002, scientists were reported to have discovered a “genetic predisposition to violence” in the form of the MAOA gene (monoamine oxidase A). Bioethicists reflecting on the discovery recommended that parents should use preimplantation genetic diagnosis to genetically test their embryos for the dangerous gene and encouraged states to screen newborns for those children who harboured the criminal tendency. This chapter shows that scientists never in fact discovered a genetic predisposition to violence, for discussions of the 2002 study that conceive of the study in that way fundamentally mischaracterize the results about MAOA. This mischaracterization has corrupted the bioethical discussions, leading to dangerous confusion about who does and does not bear a “predisposition to violence”.Less
In 2002, scientists were reported to have discovered a “genetic predisposition to violence” in the form of the MAOA gene (monoamine oxidase A). Bioethicists reflecting on the discovery recommended that parents should use preimplantation genetic diagnosis to genetically test their embryos for the dangerous gene and encouraged states to screen newborns for those children who harboured the criminal tendency. This chapter shows that scientists never in fact discovered a genetic predisposition to violence, for discussions of the 2002 study that conceive of the study in that way fundamentally mischaracterize the results about MAOA. This mischaracterization has corrupted the bioethical discussions, leading to dangerous confusion about who does and does not bear a “predisposition to violence”.