Van Dyke Casey Van Dyke Kimberly Strickland English 1010 April 16th, 2014 To Clone or not to Clone

Since the beginning of modern science, scientists have had the desire to play the hand of god and create life by the process of cloning. Everyone has heard the

story of Molly the sheep who was one of the first successful cloned animals. Since then cloning has proved that it is possible to clone not only animals but also humans. There are many view points on this subject, and it seems since the manifestation of our ability to create life we have tread ever so softly knowing that with this power, comes great responsibility. With our century bringing forth so many inventions for the good of mankind, the ability to play god and create life has some cautious to proceed any further, and others jumping for joy and looking toward the unknown with great optimism. The Pro Clone group have many reason to believe in the good of human cloning. Everyone in this world has seen, heard of, or been close to that has been sick from disease that in this present time is incurable and we have seen those loved ones suffer and eventually lose their battle to their sickness. There is a movie called the island that exemplifies this point to perfection. Ewan McGregor and Scarlet Johansson star in the movie The Island which takes place in the near future. Ewan and Scarlett are Copies or Clones of two living people in the world who have purchased the clones for themselves. The people who have these clones have

Van Dyke

purchased these copies of themselves because all of their genetics, vital organs, DNA are a perfect match. What does this mean? It means that if ever these two individuals have any health problems, lose a leg, need a heart transplant, their Copies played by Ewan and Scarlett, will be there to supply them with whatever their bodies need. Having a copy of yourself being kept for you in case of an emergency is kind of extreme but it isnt totally out of the question. Obviously our clones wouldnt be raised in a solitary society only knowing what they are taught and being clueless to the Real world, but the question would be how to humanely keep them alive but not conscious of the world around them. The other positive would be for the many women who cant reproduce naturally. Many women in the world have infertility problems and the many advances in medical science to combat the problem is far from being successful. In the article titled The Benefits of Human Cloning, Simon Smith states Couples go through physically and emotionally painful procedures for a small chance of having children. Many couples run out of time and money without successfully having children. Human cloning could make it possible for many more infertile couples to have children than ever before possible. With this option that could be made available for couples who are struggling with emotional, and physical problems, who can deny that pursuing every option to better the lives of millions who suffer from infertility is the way to go. Many people do not see the pros to cloning but only the negative aspects. These certain individuals and groups who oppose human

Van Dyke cloning, and they oppose it for many different reasons that seems to make a lot of sense.

There is the fact that clones wouldnt have their own personal identity. They will most likely have their own personality due to environmental circumstances, but they will share many similarities that their original copy already possesses. Say you were a copy of a person already in existence and they were 30 years old. You were created when they were 20 years old and 10 years have passed so now you are 10 years old. The surprise of what you will look like has already been taken from you due to the fact you can look at your own self seemingly like a back to the future situation. If you know what you will look like, wont it create a certain unauthentic feel to your life? I would think that the belief in God may become obsolete because instead of the belief that God created you as an individual out of love for you, you will know the truth, that you are a creation of man. If human lives can be created so easily, does one human life even matter or have significant worth? Life is beautiful and full of unexpected joys and sadness. Does a clone who society sees as a 2nd class citizen have the same value as a person who was naturally conceived? Jen Franchino composed an article for the University of Delaware discussing this same point, she states, Critics argue that cloning encourages parents to value how well children can genetically meet their expectations rather than loving them for being just their children. Also with cloning humans, parents and society may now see their children as objects and not as human beings with actual feelings. The article titled The Dangers of Human Cloning, states There is a possibility that cloned individuals

Van Dyke

might not receive their due share of respect and acceptance in the society. Its believed that there will be unsettled opinions about the rights granted to a clone. Also, the real beauty of humanity lies in the differences we witness amongst each other. Cloning would kill the surprise element over here. Again the issue of a cloned human being less than a naturally created human, is stressed. The other issue that is encountered in the quest to whether or not to move forward with cloning technology comes from religious viewpoints that Playing God is not something to take lightly. Catholicism seems to take the strongest and most clear stance against human cloning. The belief that our soul that is created by God is placed into our bodies at conception will be destroyed and have no meaning for those that are artificially created. Not created by a loving God, but by a man who is trying to undermine the great plan of the God of these believers. The Theist sect is the strongest opposition that is seen among groups that are against the cloning process. Where does that leave other religions like Buddhism or Islam? Their stance on the matter is much less clear. Courtney Campbell, director of the Program for Ethics at Oregon State University states, Buddhism might be willing to accept cloning, Campbell said, because it represents a leap in modern science and self-understanding that could be considered a path to enlightenment. According to Campbell Hindu religious scholars have issued flashing red lights, according to Campbell which means they are calling for a temporary pause to provide time to think, but have not issued an

Van Dyke outright objection of human cloning. There are many different view points on human cloning that I have listed

above. The opinions are broad, but both sides either seek for the pursuit of cloning human or they do not. My viewpoints are a little mixed, and Ive tried to take a stance for either side but I cant seem to take a strong stance for either side. Ill start with the pros to human cloning that seem pretty apparent to me. My Aunt cannot conceive naturally and if it wasnt for adoption she would not have a son. Adoption is really the only way to go for her to have children and although she loves her son, he isnt her or her husbands biological child. Many mothers suffer from this same dilemma and Ive seen the heartache it can cause. A mothers bond with her child is something every little girl dreams about. When she finds out she cannot produce a child of her own I have seen womens lives shatter. In the article Cloning for Infertile Couples, Bob, a husband and his wife Anne cannot have children of their own. Bob states, It's worse than losing a child. It's loosing all your children," Bob said. "It's realizing that you can't ever have children and that's a horrible thought. Bob and Anne suffer and have no outlet for their emotions other than to adopt. Like them 12 million other Americans suffer from this problem. With this option available for human use I can see a lot of good coming from cloning humans in the future. Although I see a lot of good reasons to clone humans I also see a lot of potentially bad reasons as well. In Cloning for Infertile Couples, it states, Cloning is a question ethicists and scientists are debating. Some say a clone would suffer psychologically because it would know in great detail many things

Van Dyke

about its life. It would know pretty much what it would look like, what kind of genetic diseases it would suffer and maybe it's intellectual capabilities. Some feel that knowledge would be difficult for an individual to handle. This is where cloning seems a little unethical and I feel a little uneasy about the idea. I think if I looked like another person and I was a clone, I would feel less of a human being. I dont wish that on anybody and I dont know how a clone wouldnt feel this way. Everyone around you was conceived naturally and you keep a secret in your heart that you werent created like they were. The next concern comes when many people in this world find joy and happiness believing they were created by a power greater than themselves. How would a clone ever find the happiness that can come from believing in a higher power than themselves. I understand a lot of people dont believe in a higher power and that is completely fine, but I feel that every clone wouldnt even have a chance to believe like a normal person. We grow up with a sense of heritage and ancestry and that helps most of us get through the tough times in our lives. That close tie we have with family and knowing that we came from our mother and father instead of a test tube in a laboratory seems like a much more meaningful conception. I feel my stance on human cloning seems to lean more towards the latter and not proceeding down this path. I do believe that there are some very good things that could come from human cloning, but I dont think that the ethics meet those requirements. I feel that it would be unfair to bring a life into a world that would most likely look at them as less than human. Morally speaking, I feel that creating a life that doesnt necessarily come from natural means,

Van Dyke goes against our society and my personal beliefs. That there is a God, and he is the sole creator and ruler of my life and our universe.

Works Cited
Kolata, Gina. The Hot Debate About Cloning Human Embryo. New York Times, New York Times, 26 October 1993. Web. 17 March 2014. Smith, Simon. The Benefits of Human Cloning. Human Cloning.org, Human Cloning.org, 26 January 1998. Web. 10 April 2014. May, Jeff. The Cons of Human Cloning. University of Delaware, University of Delaware, 10 May 2000. Web. 13 April 2014. Wickman, Gary. Potential Dangers of Human Cloning.HealthGuidance.org, HealthGuidance.org. Web. 11 April 2014. Sullivan, Bob. Religion Reveals little Consensus on Cloning. NBCNews.org, NBCNews.org. Web. 9 April 2014. Staff. Cloning for Infertile Cloning. CBSNews.com, CBSNews.com. 22 July 1998. Web. 20 April 2014.