CEU Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2016
| Author | Petre, Ioana |
|---|---|
| Title | Genetics, Justice and Future Generations |
| Summary | How does the distribution of genetic technologies within the current generation influence the potential interests and well-being of future generations? This is the main inquiry of my thesis, which, in order to be adequately answered, is accompanied by a host of subsequent questions, such as: (i) who are the future generations?; (ii) which types of genetic procedures are, in themselves, morally problematic?; (iii) which types of genetic procedures are morally problematic for the generations to come?; (iv) how can these latter genetic technologies affect future generations?; (v) how can these latter genetic technologies affect the social environment in which the future generations will live? I argue that future generations constitute only a subtype of the large category of future people, and I provide a set of characteristics that could help us define them. I claim that germline interventions aimed at modifying the genomes of future people cannot be morally justifiable if there is no possibility of controlling the intervention either by reversing or altering it, whenever need demands it. Performing germline modifications on currently living individuals targets future generations’ health and the well-being associated to it by reducing the diversity of the human gene pool. I provide a definition of enhancement that does not only capture the core of the concept itself, but it also distinguishes it from treatment and prevention. I identify four main areas in which genetic enhancement may come to influence the lives of the future people: (i) collective action problems; (ii) impact on global risks; (iii) utopic singularity; (iv) social configuration. As far as social justice is concerned, I propose allocating enhancing vouchers to all the members of a society, including children and the yet unborn. By looking at the effects of individual enhancements on the larger social group, I recommend the subsidization of those procedures that bring the greatest collective gains. I emphasize the importance of the environment as a precursor for the materialization of the goals of genetic enhancements. Finally, I argue that epigenetics and one’s lifestyle do not constitute adequate topics for a theory of justice - distributive or intergenerational -, but they do represent a fertile ground for ethical scrutiny. |
| Supervisor | Miklosi, Zoltan |
| Department | Political Science PhD |
| Full text | https://www.etd.ceu.edu/2016/petre_ioana.pdf |
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