Fertility, The Future of…
John Ink2Quill Editorial
www.ink2quill.com

The themes of fertility, love and relationships are at the very center of the sci-fi genre. Such is the case with so many other genres also. The most well known stories are the simple ones of man and woman falling in love, or two people falling in love. That is a simple enough story that explains how children are made. Our modern age has expanded this model to worlds in the imagination. We are entering an age where the woman will not be the sole vessel of fertility. And because of that I feel that we are entering turbulent times indeed. Being a sci-fi and classic literature buff I am cautious about accepting this fact and thinking that technology can solve all our problems.

Can technology make better people than a man/ woman union could? I would answer that question with ones of my own. What is a better person? Do the lack of physical or intellectual imperfections make a person better? If you think about it all the great people in history were flawed to some degree or other. We should not obsess over a fixed idea of perfection as if somehow that will create a better society. I think that our idea of a perfect person would not survive the ages and that it is imperfect people who contribute the most to our advancement as a species. I think that Nature would weed the creature we call more perfect out. So the answer to that question is a flat ‘NO’. Now if better means fixing health issues that crop up in people throughout their lives then I am in favor of that use of emerging medical technologies. And that is what I see as a ‘better human’.

Now, it is important to say that technological advances are a great tool to fix diseases and conditions that harm our health or quality of life. Vaccines that prevent epidemics and medical treatments that cure ailments and improve health are always a good way to use technology. Technology as a tool that is well used is very valuable to society.

So what does fertility look like in the coming days, years, decades? It is an obvious observation that technology will be a big help in diagnosing harmful medical conditions and even eradicating them. A genetic condition will be found and tracked and then even fixed is a good example. That is a wonderful use of the medical tools we have. I see things like spinal chord injuries being fixed so someone who was once paralyzed will be able to walk again. In antiquity we’d call that a miracle. Someone who is blind will be able to see again. Once again, that is a miracle by antiquity standards. I could write for yards and yards on parchment detailing the way medical breakthroughs will better our lives. But I won’t.

But what does all this mean for the sacred fertility of a woman? Making humans is after all a very important and sacred thing. To make a person it involves the nurturing of the infants to adulthood and the birthing of them by women. Up until this era the birthing of children was done solely by women and things worked out so well that way. I find it hard to believe that a society where people can order a baby the way you do a pizza today is a better one. Some people like pepperoni on their pizzas others prefer mushroom just like some people might like blue eyes on their ordered babies while others might prefer brown, green or an exotic red. I believe that there will be real consequences to consider to our species, that is the way we treat each other and how we respect life, when we remove women as the sole vessels of fertility. This is really uncharted territory for the human species.

John Ink2Quill

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