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c h a p t e r 1 0 Reproduction and Technology 1. Introduction Without the use of special methods, human beings reproduce in two different ways. Our primary way is to reproduce sexually through intercourse , but we also have a less common mode of asexual reproduction through the twinning of an embryo. The causes of the latter are not yet known, but it occurs only in the first fourteen days after fer­ tilization, prior to implantation—the embryo either splits in two or else a new one buds from the old one.Since reproduction by twinning is not subject to our will, it can be omitted in much of the discussion, however. I have argued that it is morally wrong to engage in orgasmic activity apart from mating, which is the activity that is directed biologically at (perhaps among other things) reproduction. The question now is whether it is morally acceptable to deliberately reproduce in a way that does not involve sexual intercourse. If the answer is positive, then reproductive technologies that work in the context of intercourse, for instance by improving sperm migration, might be acceptable, but other technologies will not be. Earlier in the book, we have seen that 379 one body 380 it is wrong, and in a certain sense even impossible, to have the unitive aspect of sex without the procreative. The question now is whether it is wrong to have the reproductive aspect without the unitive. The technologies in question include artificial insemination and in vitro fertilization. One can both ask the general question whether any such technologies are acceptable and also consider special moral questions raised by particular technologies. For instance, in the next section, I shall argue specifically that sperm donation is wrong because of the detached and anonymous way it is practiced. Likewise, if embryos are persons, then in vitro fertilization at least as currently practiced in the United States tends to result in the production of a significant number of children whose maturation one does not plan on supporting past the embryonic stage. Since it is a basic human duty to nurture children into adulthood, the production of children who, in one’s plan, will remain in a freezer for the rest of their lives—or, worse, be killed or used for medical experiments—is surely wrong. Moreover, most fertility treatments require the couple’s persistence in the treatment over a significant period of time, and anecdotal evidence suggests that such treatments can lead a couple to have negative feelings about sexuality. But we can have a case of reproduction, outside the context of intercourse, where no such special issues come up as with in vitro fertilization or sperm donation. Suppose that a husband has a blockage in the urethra that cannot be repaired, and so fertilization is done by surgically moving sperm from his testicles to his wife’s uterus outside the context of intercourse. The husband fully intends to exercise his parental duties, and the wife intends that any resulting embryos should implant and be brought to maturity. Observe that the goal in the action is good—the existence of a new human being and the­ couple’s joint opportunity for loving the new human being. But good goals are not enough—for a right action the means need to be acceptable , too. It would seem quite consistent with the rest of this book to argue that the significance of intercourse is its connection to reproduction, but reproduction has an innate value independent of intercourse, reproduction and technology 381 thereby making it acceptable to seek reproduction apart from intercourse , but not intercourse apart from some connection to reproduction . I shall argue that there are coherent objections, however, which militate against this position. In examining this question, we will also have to sharpen our understanding of the unitive aspect of intercourse. 2. Gamete Donation In this section, I will argue that at least most cases of sperm and egg donation in Western countries are wrong. I think all cases are wrong, but this argument does not show it.The argument will be stronger in some cases than in others. Let me begin with the observation that some of the most basic positive human duties are those that flow from the parent-child relationship: the duty of children to respect their parents and take care of them in their times of need (especially old age), and the duty of parents to care for and educate their children morally, religiously, and...

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