Friday, November 7, 2014
Enhancement Usage
The other day in class we talked about the use of enhancements such as medicine, prosthetics, glasses and so on. I thought it was interesting that most of us agreed that enhancements were not a bad thing if they were necessary to bring people back to a state of normality. However, I think there is still some controversy as to what society's definition of normal is. The way I look at it is, if someone is uncomfortable or unable to function as they usually word, perhaps enhancements are acceptable in order to bring that person back to their comfortable state. It would seem unfair to allow someone to suffer if there was something that could be done to help. Therefore, is it only unmoral to use enhancements if they are being used to gain an advantage over others? Or are there other instances you guys can think of that would make enhancements unmoral?
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I completely agree with your statements about enhancements being acceptable in order to bring someone to a comfortable state. While I do think that it is unmoral to use enhancements to gain an advantage over others, I think enhancements can also be unmoral if they contain risks. Enhancements like plastic surgery can be very dangerous depending on the situation, and should only be performed if necessary. Other enhancements like steroids can also contain many risks to the individual that uses them without a valid reason. Overall, I think that enhancements are unmoral if they are used to gain an advantage, or if they are dangerous to the person using them.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Molly that enhancements such as plastic surgery and the use of steroids should only be considered unmoral if abused by an individual and used for reasons other than for medical reasons. Personally relating to this topic, my sister takes prescribed steroids in order to regulate her thyroid disease. Although she can live normally without the prescription, she would be unable to partake in any physical activity due to extreme fatigue and weakness. In her situation, the steroids are certainly not being abused, but used in a way to bring her to an average state of functioning. Her situation is very similar to those who take medication to treat asthma. Therefore, I see enhancements to be completely moral unless abused in such a way that gives an unfair advantage over others.
ReplyDeleteNobody has a right to tell someone else how to live their lives, so long as those people are not bringing harm to others. So these enhancements should strictly be a personal decision for the afflicted person to make as there is nothing immoral about it, given of course, again, they do not negatively impact other people. However, I do not understand what you meant when you talked about using enhancements to take advantage of others. How would that be done? And what would an example of that be?
ReplyDeleteIn response to your questions Matt, I do not think Kathleen means using enhancements to take advantage of others but rather use enhancements to be “better” than the normal standard. For instance there are athletes that receive injected steroids to improve their performance on the field, hence giving them an advantage over the other players who are not using these steroids. The steroid user has physical advantage over the others, and his usage is essentially viewed as unethical because he is causing a game that is based on skilled and ability, to involve someone with this unfair advantage due to the enhancements.
DeleteEnhancements themselves are not unmoral. Changing how you look is a personal choice. In reality, they can be beneficial in raising ones confidence. What is unmoral, however, is when people abuse them in order to gain an advantage over others.
ReplyDeleteFrom a religious standpoint, however, I can understand why these people consider enhancements unmoral. If one believes they were made in Christ's image and likeness, then it is understandable that they believe that changing this is unmoral.
What I think is interesting is that what constitutes morality and immorality is largely based off of society’s construction of these terms. Ultimately, our judgments regarding these terms is necessary to form some conception of normality and abnormality. But an individual has the right and ability to do what he/she pleases with his/her body. I think it becomes an issue of immorality if the individual is inflicting harm on his/herself or if the individual’s enhancement is harming another human life in some way. For example, a person who is using diet pills with severe side effects for the purposes of obtaining society’s standard of beauty is ultimately abusing his/her body through these supposed “enhancements.” The risks are not worth the outcome, and I think this is an example of when a product that has been marketed as an enhancement can actually be a destructive force. However, there is an extensive number of enhancements, specifically in the medical industry, that improve a person’s health and wellbeing. These are the ones we consider moral and it would be immoral to not give the person an enhancement if his/her life was at risk.
ReplyDeleteThis thread shows that there are many different types of enhancements, which can either be moral or immoral based on society's values. In American culture, we have the "American Dream" which is the idea that anyone can be successful if s/he works hard enough. We can see where competition comes into play now. Eveyone is trying to make it to the top, but there are only so many positions there. In this sense, I think it's safe to say that enhancements that give you an edge over others is immoral. The argument that an individual has the right and ability to do what s/he please with his/her body becomes hazy because it does end up affecting others. For example, we can't just have all athletes shooting up on steroids to get ahead of each other in hopes that they just shoot up more than the next athlete. I think the root of the problem is the competition mixed with unobtainable expectations.
ReplyDeleteI find the debate about enhancements to be very intriguing. On one hand I would say that they are a problem because they are unnatural. Sometimes it may better to let nature take its course. There is also the problem of describing what "normal" is. I like what many people said about returning to a comfortable state, but how far should people go? Part of me wants to say enhancements should not be used, however it is unethical to not use the technology and medicine we have if someone is suffering.
ReplyDeleteIts not that I see enhancements as being immoral if you are using them when you don't need to be brought back to a state of "normality". Its just that I wouldn't want enhancements unless I needed to return to a state of "normality" because I am perfectly content with the way that my body is. I just don't fault people who seek enhancements as a way to improve their odds of winning a game or being better at something. That is societies fault, because society has outrageous expectations of some of its members, which puts the enormous pressure on them to do whatever they can to win the game.
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