Beyond Therapy: Biotechnology and the Pursuit of Happiness

by The President's Council on Bioethics, Leon R. Kass (Foreword)

A groundbreaking new exploration of the promises and perils of biotechnology -- and the future of American society. Biotechnology offers exciting prospects for healing the sick and relieving suffering. But because our growing powers also enable alterations in the workings of the body and mind, they are becoming attractive to healthy people who would just like to look younger, perform better, feel happier, or become more "perfect." This landmark book -- the product of more than sixteen months of research and reflection by the members of the President's Council on Bioethics -- explores the profound ethical and social consequences of today's biotechnical revolution. Almost every week brings news of novel methods for screening genes and testing embryos, choosing the sex and modifying the behavior of children, enhancing athletic performance, slowing aging, blunting painful memories, brightening mood, and altering basic temperaments. But we must not neglect the fundamental question: Should we be turning to biotechnology to fulfill our deepest human desires? We want better children -- but not by turning procreation into manufacture or by altering their brains to gain them an edge over their peers. We want to perform better in the activities of life -- but not by becoming mere creatures of chemistry. We want longer lives -- but not at the cost of becoming so obsessed with our own longevity that we care little about future generations. We want to be happy -- but not by taking a drug that gives us happy feelings without the genuine loves, attachments, and achievements that are essential to true human flourishing. As we enjoy the benefits of biotechnology, members of the council contend, we need to hold fast to an account of the human being seen not in material or mechanistic or medical terms but in psychic, moral, and spiritual ones. By grasping the limits of our new powers, we can savor the fruits of the age of biotechnology without succumbing to its most dangerous temptations. Beyond Therapy takes these issues out of the narrow circle of bioethics professionals and into the larger public arena, where matters of this importance rightly belong.

Genres: Philosophy, Science, Nonfiction, Biology

352 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 2003

Reviews

[Managing my virtual footprint · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have been reading about this book through bioliberal commentaries for the last 2 years. In many ways, the book was much more nuanced in its arguments and much more exploratory in its tone than I expected. At the same time, although the book tries (pretends?) not to take any strong positions, it sometimes sneaks in very strong critiques of enhancement without proper justification (as most commentators have pointed out). Overall, I wouldn't recommend this book, because its main strength (the exploratory nature of the discussion) is neither interesting when it comes to arguments (since they are very tentative) nor as an unbiased introduction (because it has a very strong bioconservative bias).

[Perry · Rating 5 out of 5]

A variety of new drugs and other treatments are in the pipeline that have the potential to make us jump higher, think sharper, and have beautiful, strong children. This is the lay person's version of a report by the President's Council on Bioethics. As a body grafted of both free enterprise idealists and holier-than-thou moralists, the Council, through it's chairman/author Leon Cass, takes the unspoken position that the diffusion of such technologies is inevitable, unless individuals take a moral position against them (read: it's not government's role to stop them if people want them, but people shouldn't want them because that's not what God wants). Despite this subtext, there's a lot of great, sometimes startling information in here (one example: drugs developed by the military that allow soldiers to forget the horror of battle, or perhaps atrocities they committed).

[Vickie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very interesting, but you have to have patience (and at times a dictionary and thesaus). In short it talks about the ins and outs of gene manipulation and therapy.