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Gattaca
Article July 2009
DOI. 10.1344/rtXf2009.15.7786

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Jose Luis Perez Trivino

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P UBLICACI6NC UATRIMESTRAL DEL M ASTER ENBIOETICA YD ERECHO ■ http://www.bioeticayderecho.ub.es

Revista d e Bioetica y D erecho number 15-ENER02009 pagina is

Bioethics and Cinema JOSE LUIS PEREZ TRIVINO

"Gattaca"

Jose Luis Perez Trivino. Professor of Philosophy of Law at the ETHAN HAWKE
Pompeu Fabra University.

One of the central points of brions are filtered to avoid diseases and any
Gattaca, the wonderful film by Andrew Niccol (in other trait that can be described as undesirable.

my opinion the best science-fiction film along with

Blade Runner), is related to the power that human In this way, the new being created in the laboratory

beings have acquired in the sphere of procreation. is a "valid being", an individual with all his

Although the film is set in a near but uncertain capacities developed one hundred percent. An
future, at present such power of manipulation is almost perfect being.
already real and for this reason, moral reflection
faces a series of problems that we could describe Vincent Freeman (Ethan Hawke) is one of the
as pressing and novel. Pressing because they last 'invalids', a being conceived in love before

demand increasingly urgent and novel answers births in laboratory tubes.

from us by asking ourselves questions that until
now we had not even been able to imagine. A big river became general. But I tried them
part of DNA bases made after his birth

ment show that you have a 99% chance of

developing a heart defect and dying before your faster, smarter. But the valid brother always beats
30th birthday. In the society depicted in the film, Vin cent in all the competitions in which they
this physical circumstance condemns him to a participate. However, Vin cent does not give up in
his efforts to be an astronaut. Finally, he abandons
These questions have the same his family and begins a journey of physical

cause: the spectacular and rapid development second-level life due to the lack of professional sacrifices in order to have the capacities of the

that assisted human reproduction techniques qualifications that his diminished physical abilities valid ones.
have experienced, which have caused procreation, allow him. In the world of Gattaca, the lives of
which seemed to be a sphere ruled by chance, to individuals are determined

seem today more and more like a sphere where Being aware that he will never achieve his goal
chance reigns, choice, the will of human beings. because of its genetic makeup. Saliva analysis or along this path, he decides to impersonate one of
And this generates deep-seated moral questions, a simple hair are significant to know all the them, Jerome (Jude Law), a super athlete who,
such as those that have to do with the possibility biological details of a possible boyfriend or worker. due to an accident, has to use a wheelchair. Both

of choosing the sex of children, the possibilities of For this reason, Vincent's genetic "defects" prevent of them
genetic manipulation or even the not very distant him from fulfilling his dream of being an astronaut.
ability to clone individuals. His father at one point in the film tells him "son, they come to an agreement whereby Jero
the only time you will step inside a spaceship will “lends his body to me, and Vincent lends him
be if you take care of cleaning it." donate your dreams”. That way

Vincent reaches his goal and enters

at astronaut school. But

duos. Before being able to board, he will be involved as

This is precisely one of the central issues of a suspect in the murder of one of those responsible
Gattaca Precisely, to compensate for the "failed" birth for the flight to Titan, chance leads to

(acronym for the four initials of the proteins that of Vincent, the parents decide to have another

make up DNA: A, G, T and C, adenine, guanine, child, but instead of having him for "love", they that one of the investigators is his brother, which
cytosine and thymine) that deals with a relatively have him in the genetic laboratory with the result leads him to have to face him again. This

near future where parents, thanks to advances in of bringing into the world a reproduces among them one of the challenges
genetic medicine, they have the possibility of they had in the past, to see who swims further.

configuring the genetic material of their children. valid individual. Between the two sisters Vincent finally manages to defeat him and thus

Before gestation, the em a strong rivalry arises that leads them to be board the ship that will take him away from a world.
continually competing to see who is stronger,

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Revista d e Bioetica y D erecho number is-enero2oo9 pagina ie

Bioethics and Cinema

with a part of a human cell and another of a planet, Do parents have the right or are they legitimated to
implying intervene genetically in their children to perfect
der the link between the two phenomena them?
less. Not in vain at the end of the film, Vincent,

already in the space capsule, makes the following The question is pertinent because intuitively it
reflection: "every atom of our body was once part seems that an intervention of these characteristics
of a star... does not

raises doubts: why limit technical progress in this

maybe I'm not leaving, maybe I'm going home." field and its application so that individuals improve
their potential? What difference would it make with
Currently, medicine has developed techniques education, through which we also want our children
that make it possible to subject embryos to a to improve and perfect their talents and abilities?

preventive genetic test. This method is offered to why should we conform

parents who wish to avoid the risk of disease
transmission.

hereditary data. It's already feasible join us with our luck in the lot

remedy certain serious genetically conditioned genetic laugh?

do for which it was not made "to measure". diseases through certain co-interventions There are reasons that support the legitimacy
of this type of intervention as well as arguments
Indeed, Gattaca addresses a central theme rectives in the genome. But it is not at all improbable that lead us to adopt a somewhat more prudent
such as eugenics. that a corrective intervention can be passed to a position in this regard. In this regard, I will limit
This technique supposes the possibility of perfecting intervention. myself to pointing out three positions, the first
intervening in the DNA with the aim of perfecting completely favorable to intervention
the new beings. For example, treatments that improve memory,
Interestingly, the helical shape of DNA is repeated musculature, height, and genetic sex selection are
at various points in the film, most notably on the already possible. An example is enough, since the perfecting genetics. This would be Savulescu's
staircase in Jerome's house. Do not 1980s there has been a position. In the second place, a completely opposite
position is the one that denies perfecting genetic
It is also no longer curious that Jerome's middle of human growth hormone intervention on the basis that it supposes intervening
name is "Eugene”, a name derived from the Latin for the assumption of children with hormonal on a gift that has been granted to us. This would be
meaning "of good origin, well born”. Again, the deficiencies that makes them manifestly shorter the position of San del. In the third place, I will
reference to eugenics is obvious. Nor should it be than the rest. However, in 1996, 40% of the analyze a position that also denies perfecting
a coincidence that his last name is "Morrow" which prescriptions for this hormone were for children genetic intervention, but supports its pretensions in
in English means "the next day" or the "near future". whose short height was not related to any affecting the autonomy of the new.

some medical problem. And once this step is

In contrast to Jerome, Vincent (the "victor") taken, why not give the hormone to children, not
surnamed Freeman, "free man," is the free individual short, but who want to join a basketball team? This vo individual. This would be Habermas's position.
who manages to overcome the obstacles of natural leads to questioning whether there is a general
determination/ obligation to generate beings that will have a For some bioethicists, as is the case of Julian
Savulescu, health is not intrinsically valuable, but

genetics. to the extent that, instrumentally,

Actually the film shows the connection that happy life.

may exist in the future between the domain of space What Gattaca suggests precisely is the increases our autonomy. For this

and cells. It is no coincidence that one of the contrast between natural children and genetically For this reason, parents committed to the autonomy
advertising posters for the film shows a circle formed perfected children, and what he suggests to us is of their children not only have the duty to promote
the justification for eugenics: their health, but they are also obliged

All Intellectual Property rights belong to their respective owners, so reproduction is prohibited except for noncommercial uses and provided that the complete source and its
electronic address http://www.bioeticayderecho.ub.es are cited.______________________________
The transformation, in whole or in part, as well as the incorporation into another work of the contents without the written permission of the copyright holders is prohibited.
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Revista d e Bioetica y D erecho number 15-enero 2009 pagina 17

Bioethics and Cinema

morally to modify them genetically to improve their based on the fact that it does not harm the individual late And although it is also true that when you have
capabilities. So parents should but improves it, must face the objection according a child without genetic intervention, your opinion is
to which such interventions suppose a not not asked either, in the first case, the parents
make use of all the technological advances insignificant affectation to the fundamental irreversibly impose their preferences, something
logical to manipulate their memory, height, or any that does not happen in natural birth. The conse
other capacity or character trait so that they have genetic elements of our existence, which in turn
the greatest opportunities that allow them to lead a guide our own lives and our self-understanding as
better life. moral beings. consequences for the son when he finds that his
identity is the fruit of the choices of third parties,
An opposite thesis is that represented by an even if they are his parents, they can be more than
author such as Sandel, who maintains that it is Habermas exposes what is one of the least remarkable in his own moral self-understanding.
necessary to recognize the received character of acceptable consequences of eugenic techniques The awareness of not being the author of one's
life, which implies recognizing that talents and when wondering if genetic transformation will mean own actions and pretensions seems to have
abilities are not fully ours, but that we are custodians an increase in autonomy or rather it may mean an repercussions on his identity, and at the same time,
of them and that therefore Therefore, not all use of undermining of the self-understanding that on his understanding of not being the only architect
them is permitted. As far as children are concerned, individuals have about their own livesl . In short, of a biography for which he is not responsible. For
this conception leads to accepting them as they this question is the one that appears in Gatta ca, this reason, the individual who has undergone
are, not as objects of design or of the will of the because although the so-called valid individuals genetic intervention cannot see himself as a fact
parents (of their ambition, in many cases). For this have seen increases
position, the only legitimate intervention on children
is that aimed at curing them of illnesses. By limiting
their interference to these functions, parents do not

become designers or become gives them their autonomy, at least in what refers natural, but interprets that the programmer has
to the potentialities of their body, the self- acted with a determined will without counting on
understanding of themselves as autonomous
beings in what Your consent. The intervention

that it refers to being responsible for one's own Thus, genetics binds the affected person to a

biography may rather diminish. certain vital plan and, in a certain sense, conditions
his freedom to choose his own life or at least

the children into simple instruments of his will. The The real problem with genetic intervention, prevents him from resuming it, changing it or
problem with this position lies in the difficulty in even when it is guided or established by the
distinguishing between the help that parents parents themselves (and not only by doctors or revise it in a strong sense.

provide to their children through education and other state authorities), is that it paradoxically puts Perhaps in part to avoid the moral problems
training and that which would be carried out by personal autonomy under the protection of a certain posed by this last conception, some authors have
certain genetic optimization techniques? What authority at risk, improvement. The risk of opted for what is called “liberal eugenics", that is, a
substantial difference would there be between some instrumentalization seems to be updated, since the non-coercive genetic optimization that does not
parents link to the decision about the genetic limit the autonomy of children. In this practice, the
program of their child some intentions that will later State does not establish how the children should
parents who pay for the most expensive schools, become expectations regarding it, but without be, and the interference of the parents is not
hire private tutors etc., to provide the best education granting the recipient the possibility absolute, since they could only design those
for their child and that this results in the best capacities or optimal traits.
opportunities and those who pay for pills that
improve

his height or his memory? review quality. mizers without conditioning their elec

It is interesting to point out that whoever In the situation described, the parents decide tions of life plans. Now, for a position like this not
adopts Savulescu's position, favorable to any the genetic configuration of their child but without
perfected intervention attending to their will. drive to a world like Gattaca

1. Habermas, Jurgen: The future of human nature. Towards a liberal eugenics?, Paidds, Barcelona, 2002 [Suhrkamp Verlag, Frankfurt, 2000]. Page 45.

All Intellectual Property rights belong to their respective owners, so reproduction is prohibited except for noncommercial uses and provided that the complete source and its
electronic address http://www.bioeticayderecho.ub.es are cited.______________________________
The transformation, in whole or in part, as well as the incorporation into another work of the contents without the written permission of the copyright holders is prohibited.
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Revista d e Bioetica y D erecho number is - e nero 2009 p age is

Bioethics and Cinema

optimizing techniques should be available assignment of personal and collective will be undermined,
to all parents so that there is no division responsibility and it is here that there is that we will find ourselves in a kind of
between first- and second-class individuals. the greatest danger of moral insecurity." moral free fall, that we will have to think
And from this realization Dworkin again in the midst of a new background
expresses his greatest fears caused by with
!
However, perhaps the difference with the avatars of genetic engineering: “The uncertain results. ”
Gattaca was not so great and it is terror that many of us experience when It is not only a fear of Dworkin, it is a
probably inevitable that in the future we thinking about genetic engineering is generalized fear to which sooner or later
will face challenges not a fear based on what is wrong, but we will have to give an answer. Gattaca,
about our moral understanding of the rather, is the fear of losing our grip on in any case, will serve as a stimulus in
world, specifically the assignment of what is wrong... [we have] a right to worry that reflection in search of a satisfactory
responsibility and the distinction between about the fact that solution that reconciles the means that
chance and will. In this regard, Dworkin make us happier, with the survival of
indicates that “the most significant use of
the distinction between chance and
choice is that of the our traditional moral convictions our most human side.

2. Dworkin, Ronald: Sovereign Virtue, op. cit., p. 490,

All Intellectual Property rights belong to their respective owners, so reproduction is prohibited except for non-commercial uses and provided that the complete source and its
electronic address http://www.bioeticayderecho.ub.es are cited.______________________________
The transformation, in whole or in part, as well as the incorporation into another work of the contents without the written permission of the copyright holders is prohibited.