Gattaca By Daniel Allott A In a scene from the science fiction film Gattaca, a genetic counsellor speaks with a young couple about the child they’d like to have. The couple’s first child, Vincent, was diagnosed immediately after birth with several disabilities including a heart defect that puts his life expectancy at just 30.2 years. So the couple decide to genetically engineer their second child. The geneticist explains that after screening hundreds of embryos, they are left with two healthy boy embryos and two healthy girl embryos. ‘All that remains is to select the most compatible candidate,’ he tells them. B They decide they want another boy, a playmate for Vincent. Reading a report, the geneticist says, ‘You have specified hazel eyes, dark hair and fair skin.’ He then goes on to explain that he has already got rid of genes which might cause problems, things such as premature baldness, short- sightedness, deafness, aggression or obesity. The mother interrupts: ‘We didn’t want … I mean, diseases, yes, but …’ insight Upper-Intermediate Student’s Book Unit 4 pp.42–43 © Oxford University Press 20 14 1 Her husband says, ‘Right, we were just wondering if it’s good just to leave a few things to chance.’ The geneticist smiles and says, ‘You want to give your child the best possible start. Believe me, we have enough imperfection built in already. Your child doesn’t need any additional burdens. Keep in mind this child is still you, only the best of you.’ C The couple agree, and their second son, Anton, is the near genetically perfect son they had hoped for. In the past people used to leave things to chance, but in Gattaca’s world few parents want to risk producing children who become members of an underclass called ‘invalids’. Anton’s older brother, Vincent, wants to become an astronaut but because of his genetic profile he is labelled as an ‘invalid’ and can only work as a cleaner. As a result, there is a lot of pressure on parents to genetically engineer their children. D Set in the ‘not too distant future,’ the film, which starred Ethan Hawke, Uma Thurman, and Jude Law, was released on October 24, 1997. Today advances in reproductive and genetic medicine might well lead to the type of society Gattaca warned against, a society where a drop of blood decides where you can work, who you should marry and what you can achieve. In 2003 the Human Genome Project increased our understanding of the genetic roots of human traits. Currently, thanks to genetic screening, couples can learn a great deal about their children before they are born. Experts predict that we will be able to screen embryos for eye and hair color within a few years. Within a decade it may also be possible to predict behavioral conditions such as depression and addiction. insight Upper-Intermediate Student’s Book Unit 4 pp.42–43 © Oxford University Press 20 14 2 E Some people believe this new technology is changing parents’ attitudes toward their children. ‘The attitude of parents may shift from unconditional acceptance to critical scrutiny,’ warned the Council on Bioethics in 2003. ‘The very first act of parenting now becomes not the unreserved welcoming of an arriving child, but the judging of his or her fitness, while still an embryo, to become their child.’ Arthur Caplan, head of the Division of Bioethics at New York University, believes that American culture encourages this desire for genetic perfection: ‘There’s going to be demand in a society oriented toward doing well, toward perfection, toward the value of the best you can be, even a society that says, ‘I want a better life for my child than I had for myself.’ So somebody’s going to say ‘Why won’t I test my kids, to give them a better life than I had?’ F Given all these changes, how long will it be before mothers feel they have to modify the genes of their ‘imperfect’ babies? How long until those who do not get tested will be regarded as immoral? At some point the government might come along and say ‘It’s so expensive to have disability, here’s our policy: You can’t have a baby unless you have genetic testing.’ G Genetic engineering raises many questions, and most of us are troubled by the idea of ‘playing God’. Many people believe that children are gifts which should be appreciated as they come to us, not commodities to be manufactured. Genetic engineering fails to appreciate the value of human difference, and that is an important part of what it means to be human. A002004 insight Upper-Intermediate Student’s Book Unit 4 pp.42–43 © Oxford University Press 20 14 3.