The Ethics of Human Cloning

The Ethics of Human Cloning In the beginning, God created Earth, thus creating man and woman... Or at least that is what some believe. However, over thousands of years, history, culture, and technology has slowly laid out the foundation of life; the human age and civilization went through a metamorphosis. Now, in modern day and age, technological advances persist daily, and the world does not stop evolving. We, as people, continue to learn more about ourselves, about our planet, about the stars, and – basically – about life itself. Biologically speaking, the human body is such a marvelous, complex unit, and, to this day, our leading scientists are still trying to discover what keeps us “ticking.” Some people say that the human race evolved from other ancient life sources; some people say that some cosmic phenomena took place; some people say that some heavenly being is responsible for our existence. Whichever the case may be, that information will forever be held in the book of life, deep within its emeritus pages. The question at hand is this: Is human cloning unethical? Should man be allowed to, in a sense, play God, and create humanistic beings? Is it just? Is it an advancement in medical history? Well, due to this topic indirectly taking a touch upon religion (which is a controversial topic within itself), there are a plethora of opposing views. Cloning is nothing new to medical sciences. Cloning is an archaic story, primeval in history. The word “clone” is derived from the Greek word klon, which means asexual reproduction. In 1996, William Blake, a member of the scientific team at the Roslin Institute, created a poem (“Mary Had A Little Lamb”) about one of their experiments. In “Mary Had A Little Lamb,” Blake depicts the cloning of a sheep, and takes an askant approach to the cloning humans. In the poem, Blake references Dolly, the sheep that his institution cloned, and he uses Mary as a symbolic approach to the cloning of human beings. Anyway, the question that is posed is not necessarily on how the process works, but it is on the views of the morality of human cloning. To Christians, playing God is an immoral sin. In Christianity, it is the religious belief that there is one God, and only one. God is the creator of all, and there is no higher being. So, with that being said, when the discussion of human cloning comes about, people use descriptions, such as “biologically mistaken,” “ethically wrong,” “morally despicable,” and “socially unjust.” However, although the religious aspect of this matter is harped upon by a large percentage of non-supporters, there lies the legal, moral, ethical, social, and political aspects, too. The people in opposition of human cloning feel that cloning another human will just compromise one's individuality. Whether it be in a biological-sense or in a religious-sense, we are all put here on this planet as individuals. As individuals, we live ours lives differently, and we have a sense of purpose on Earth. No two humans are identical, not even identical twins, which is why the non-supporters feel that cloning humans will just surpass the laws of what is right and what is not. Also, some believe that it undermines the structures of one's family. They believe that when a man and woman have sex and birth a baby, it is a symbol of love and continuation. Cloning will do nothing but bypass these beliefs, thus destroying the heritage of one's line. Cloning humans will create a reductionistic view on human life, instead of a holistic, and it will – in a sense – dwindle the value of human existence. Though, there is always the inquiry of how would a clone be treated. If a human was cloned, what would be the quality of its life? This, too, drives people away from supporting human cloning, because they feel that it would lead of life comprised of ridicule and never-ending medical and physical testing. Meany think that reproducing a human as a clone will, in turn, dehumanize that individual. A substitute for adoptions; a remedy for infertility; the farming of organs. All of these ideologies are positive factors of human cloning. People feel that human cloning will permit homosexual and lesbian couples to have children, as well as infertile men or women. These scientists will be able to grant these couples the “offspring” that they desire; “offspring” that could not be created between the two of them. In addition, supporters stress that the offspring/children of the host will not be “copies,” but “clones.” In opposition to the question of individuality, supporters feel that these offspring will not suffer from a lack of individuality, but they will, in fact, be better. When these offspring are born, they are many, many years younger than their parents, and the “family” will not be interconnected by psychological similarities. Also, the offspring will be highly valued, due to the difficult decisions of the parents. Although human cloning is an interesting topic, it is not an easy one. These people will have to go through a complicated process, in which the end result, their child, will be highly valued and loved. Likewise, in a religious context, some people may search for a sense of immorality within their clones.
Through the process of scientifically doubling these individuals, faults can be eliminated. Thus, through a continuation of trials, a “perfect” child could be created. In addition, in a scientific-sense, a farming of organs can occur. If somebody's child has passed, could it be possible for a re-creation of this being? Well, with bioethics, this would be possible. Is it morally just? That questions lies to be answered by an individual, but it would be possible. For example, if a man's son dies in a car crash, scientifically speaking, a portion of his skin could be cryopreserved and saved for human cloning. It would push the boundaries of what is realistic and it would tempt moral boundaries, but that is left in the hands of the father. Conclusively, the subject matter lies within the individual, and whether or not they feel that it pushes their moral boundaries. However, we are far from successfully completed a human cloning experiment. We, as humans, rely on sexual intercourse to continue the progression of heredity. The story of the “birds and the bees” stands firmly.