Review

Hard thinking allowed

DESIGNING LIFE? Genetics, Procreation and Ethics
Maureen Junker-Kenny (ed)
Ashgate, 1999, £35.00

This is a fascinating but not an easy read. It is a collection of essays based on a 1997 lecture series organised by Trinity College Dublin, which brought together contributors from a range of disciplines, including theology, philosophy, psychology and genetics, to grapple with the ethical issues raised by emerging genetic and reproductive technologies.

The resulting book informally divides into two halves: the first sets out the parameters of existing genetic knowledge and current mechanisms to facilitate ethical discussion and regulation of genetic advances; the second focuses more explicitly on the nature of our humanity, particularly in relation to procreation.

In a particularly interesting contribution Neville Cox offers a legal analysis of the ‘failure’ of ‘rights talk’, enshrined in the European Convention on Human Rights and Biomedicine, to provide an adequate language for embryonic protection. He appeals for the development of a more difficult and largely ‘untested’ language of ethics.

David McConnell, a professor of genetics, explores the interplay between genetics and environment in creating human personality and behaviour, and asks to what extent genetics is uncovering a deterministic ‘machine in man’. He concludes by offering two glimmers of hope for a non-deterministic answer: namely the on-going mystery of brain processes and of human language. He also makes a plea for renewed co-operation and dialogue between scientists and theologians in the area of genetics.

In the second half of the collection, I was particularly engaged by the reflections of psychologist Sheila Greene on the nature of personhood. Her chapter was a lucid rejoinder to talk of genetic determinism. She offers an explanation and critique of ‘sociobiology’, popularly exemplified in the neo-Darwinism of Richard Dawkins, and of similar deterministic perspectives within her own discipline.

She illustrates both the circularity and dubious science of sociobiological arguments and argues for an end to all forms of dualistic thinking about ‘nature and nurture’, proposing instead a model which can encompass ‘reciprocal determinism’. In her discussion of historical eugenic movements and current determinist theories, Greene also offers a timely reminder of the potential danger of scientific genetics which fails to grapple with the complexities of humankind.

A key theme running through the collection is the need for dialogue between science, philosophy and theology to fully address the difficult and shifting ethical challenges posed by genetics and reproductive technologies. As a result, many of the individual contributions draw on a range of expert discourses, notably philosophical and theological arguments on ethics and humanity.

Not being an expert in all this, I found the collection demanding – but felt my effort was rewarded. I came away with a clearer understanding of the current state of genetic knowledge and technological capabilities.

I was also left feeling challenged to clarify my own ethical and moral positions in relation to genetics and reproductive technologies. The book is a brave attempt to reflect the stated aim of the original lecture series, that is, to open up a forum for debate between experts and the public in this very important area. However, I suspect the complexity of the arguments may mean that this book reaches a smaller audience than it deserves.