Kass on Medical Advancements

Modern science presents may issues concerning human life. Leon Kass confronts the issue of immortality and prolonged life in his article, entitled Why Not Immortality?. Those involved in science hold the position that this could only benefit mankind. Kass, however, realizes the dangers involved in science’s position. He uses his article as a means of educating his readers on the possible problems, or at least to help them to think for themselves about the issue. Throughout the article, Kass poses questions, which will provoke his reader to think seriously about the so-called benefits of modern science. The fundamental question of the article seeks to understand whether longer life is truly an unqualified good (Kass, pp. 323).

Kass’ article begins by looking at the specific “cures” that modern science is working on. There are three particular areas of scientific development that he deals with in the article. Firstly, he addresses the use of anti-aging cures, which are known as human growth hormones. Many people are currently using these hormones to help maintain their youthful vigor. Kass reports that, in a short time, these cures will become more affordable, allowing more individuals to take advantage of them. For th

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Scientists are currently researching the genetic “switches” that cause a person to age at the rate that they do. ose, who are more concerned with having new parts altogether; stem-cell research and cloning are working on their side. He begins by addressing the teachings of the field of biology; namely that people use procreation as a means of overcoming finitude. With an extension of life, men might become bored with things. Since this is a common problem now, there is no doubt that longer lives would only cause more of a problem. However, there are those, who would be stubborn in agreeing and would continue arguing that the soul does not exist empirically, so how could it be an issue?

It is now up to Kass to give a new account for those, who believe that there is no such thing as a “soul”. That is to say that through the natural phenomenon of perpetuating life, people are linked with some form of transcendence. Will there be a problem in the job market if people are living well past one hundred? When will retirement come about for the longer-lived, and will it have a harmful effect on the others? Will there be any less honor in success if everyone else will eventually get there too? These critics fear that longer life will inevitably bring unwanted change. In their selfishness, they argue that there is no need for posterity if they have prolonged youthfulness. It is also possible that without mortality, life will be more trivial than it is now. There is enough biological reasoning behind it so that our life span does not appear unjust. The desire to prolong one’s life can cause all kinds of problems that can be avoided by changing our outlook on immortality. It should be up to man to determine when the end will come.

Approximate Word count = 2527
Approximate Pages = 10 (250 words per page double spaced)

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