Rapacon, Mark Giane Dave V.

17 August, 2017
4-BIO9 B205

Gattaca: Reaction Paper

With just a sample of blood, his fate has been dictated. Based from the movie,
Vincent Anton Freeman (Ethan Hawke) is considered a faith child, God-child, or a
degenerate. Born in a genetically-enhanced world, life expectancy and the likelihood of
diseases are ascertained at birth. Vincent, unlike his brother and the many genetically-
engineered babies, has known his fate dictated by his genetic material as he was
considered a natural baby whose genetic imprints not altered and is not genetically ideal.

Born with neurological condition (60% probability), manic depression (42 %

probability), attention deficit disorder (89% probability), and heart disorder (99%
probability), Vincent is known to have early fatal potential. Life expectancy of 30.2 years
was already revealed through the sequence of his blood by the local geneticist. With
Vincents genetic attributes, he has no chance of a good career in the future, in the society
where genetic material is an essential basis of success. The society discriminates against
flawed genetic material instead of sociocultural aspects such as gender, race, or religion.
Genoism, as what it is called in the movie, Vincent knew that he would be rejected in the
society. He struggled to overcome his perceived genetic disadvantages, and even though he
tried to maximize his full potential, he just knew that it isnt enough.

There is no gene for human spirit. This line of the movie, otherwise, proves that
even though the genetic attributes presume disadvantages in physical health, he tried to
maximize his full potential and somehow, managed to overcome his weaknesses. This is
proven by the fact that Ethan exceeded more than 30 years of his existence. Vincent, with
the desire to join the manned-mission to Titan, Saturns 14th moon, worked hard to be
physically-fit and increased his endurance on trainings in order to succeed. In spite of his
heart condition, he also managed to beat his own brother when they swam in the ocean.

Having an In-valid status, Vincent sought the help of Jerome Morrow, who is a
genetically gifted and has a perfect genetic makeup. Vincent sacrificed to be in disguise as
Jerome, wearing contact lenses to compensate for having myopia, even undergoing surgical
operation to elongate his legs and make him taller as near as 61 (which is the recorded
height of Jerome). Being crippled in a car accident, Jerome helped Vincent by lending him
his own DNA samples (urine, blood, skin, and hair). During substance-tests, Vincent
managed to pass the examination and the interviews. Only DNA samples of Valid
individuals are being recognized and are given the chance to enter the space missions.
None of the personal credential matters, only the ideal sequence of the individuals are
given the chance. Yet, he needed to make sure that there are no traces of his own DNA for
he would lose everything and will definitely go back being an in-valid.
 Nonetheless, in the context of Vincents struggle, the movies line does not fully
justify how an individual would deal with what the genes give and with how the
environment would affect ones behaviour. It is still being debated today whether nature
(DNA) or nurture (home environment) plays more important role in the survival of an
individual.

In the context of genetics, nature (DNA) is believed to be the blueprint of life. The
genotypic and phenotypic attributes of an individual is dictated by specific sequences of the
nucleotides, and the specific arrangement of amino acid sequences. Even a single alteration
of a specific sequence would cause a mutation and the expression of the whole sequence
would yield a different type of attribute, which in most cases are diseases, or if not, an
uncharacteristic aspect. The coding of genes in humans determine the attributes of a
person such as the hair, skin color, eye color, height, and the presence of hereditary
conditions and/or diseases. Albeit the presence of such facts, some abstract attributes such
as intelligence is still subjected to further research. Although it has been proven that some
behavioural genes might have been attributed also to genetic makeup of an individual. In
the part of Vincent, his genetic disadvantages limited him to do most things, especially
seeking a career path that entails rigorous physical activity. His heart condition proved to
be a threat in achieving his dream. Crossing out the help of Jerome, Vincent seemed to be
hopeless with his condition especially his 30-year life expectancy. But then, he was given a
good critical thinking and intelligence that helped him to be better at Gattaca.

On the other hand, in the context of psychology, nurture plays also an important role
in the development of a person. Environmental factors affect the behaviour of a person.
This is proven by both of the operant and classical conditioning. An individual being
trained in a specific situation or condition would learn to adapt and make certain decisions,
remotely affecting the behavioural response of the individual on certain times. In Vincents
part, he was fully aware that genoism would hinder his dreams and he knew immediately
that he need to do something in order to attain his dreams. He tries to improve his
condition by defeating his old self, being better at things. He utilizes his intelligence in
order surpass the challenges along the way.

Therefore, I firmly believe that both nature (DNA) and nurture (home environment)
play important roles in the development of the individuals. It is a balance between the two
that entails a human person to attain success in life. One cannot cross-out what the genes
code, and one learns from his own environment.