Italian Democ in Comp Pers

3 Credits · Level: Undergraduate

Recent advances in biotechnology are providing us with new ways of enhancing human beings. These include procedures such as cloning, genetic manipulation, creating ‘designer babies’, human-animal hybridation, organ harvesting and the possibility of curing diseases by conducting experiments on embryonic stem cells. This course will examine the ethical status of these procedures. In particular it will explore the question of the potential effects of this new biotechnological enhancement or ‘perfecting of human nature’ on liberal democracies, which are founded on the belief that all human beings are by nature equal. The authors selected represent a range of positions on these issues.