Abstract
This paper will examine the impact of genetic technologies on the corporeal and economical aspects of human lives while emphasizing the ambiguity of disability under these subversive circumstances. In 2013, the world was introduced to CRISPR genetic editing technology, followed by the controversial announcement in 2018 from Chinese scientist He Jiankui, who claims to have genetically engineered twins that were born HIV-immune. The possible social outcome of genetic treatment leading to the alteration of human embryos to create physically and intellectually superior offspring, as well as its impact on the social treatment of disabled bodies, is clearly illustrated in Andrew Niccol’s directive debut Gattaca. Here, I will discuss Niccol’s utilization of disabled characters in interrogating the employment of disabled characters as a narrative vehicle to reflect upon social paradigms. I examine both the subversion and expansion of the social construct of disability in Gattaca’s narrative, emphasizing the film’s portrayal of economic differences as a disabling factor in a world of augmentative technology.
Highlights
This paper will examine the impact of genetic technologies on the corporeal and economical aspects of human lives while emphasizing the ambiguity of disability under these subversive circumstances
Science fiction calls attention to pertinent issues that surface as the human body and advanced technologies continuously merge, with Kathryn Allan describing SF as “a genre that criticizes the politics and ideologies of the current day, as its writers imagine the possibilities of future worlds” [2] (p. 1)
Niccol’s vision of our future in genetic engineering encapsulates the eugenic ideology behind the bid to create genomic cures, yet disability remains an inescapable part of physical existence in the Gattaca universe
Summary
This paper will examine the impact of genetic technologies on the corporeal and economical aspects of human lives while emphasizing the ambiguity of disability under these subversive circumstances. Chinese biophysics researcher He Jiankui announced his team’s success in engineering the world’s first genetically altered babies in 2018, two days before the Second International Summit on Human Genome Editing in
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