Skip to main content

What are your feelings about "human engineering"-that is, changing person intelligence or personality by using science? Explain your opinion,...

After reading Flowers for Algernon, I see the terrible  human impact of “personality engineering.” I see that Charlie suffered incredible emotional trauma after being manipulated by personality engineering. I see that he felt a lack of control over his own life due to the shifting effects of the experiment and came to rebel against the very scientists who thought they were his saviors. His escape from Dr. Strauss and Dr. Nemur illustrates this. I also infer that personality engineering is harmful not only to its subject, but to the subject’s family, friends, and loved ones. These people may be shocked and hurt by changes in the person they loved. Alice Kinnian’s character arc illustrates this. She originally supported Charlie’s operation but quickly became overwhelmed and confused by her friend’s new personality. Since Keyes so readily persuades me to sympathize with his main character, after only reading Flowers for Algernon, I might have a dim view of personality engineering.


However, as you answer this question, it’s important to separate science fiction from fact. We are likely hundreds, if not thousands, of years away from a scientific breakthrough that would mimic the exponential intellectual growth that redefined Charlie’s personality. There are government regulations, as well as self-imposed moral rules, that make it impossible for scientists to tinker with a person’s personality in the same way as Dr. Strauss and Dr. Neumor manipulate Charlie’s thoughts and behaviors. To delve deeper into this question, I would urge you to think of less extreme real-life examples that could be classified as “human engineering.” For example, a large percentage of the population takes medication to alleviate medical problems such as ADHD, bipolar disorder, PTSD, and many other ailments. I would tentatively classify these as “human engineering” through science. These medications change how people feel inside and present themselves to the world. Many people are incredibly grateful that these medications exist and would suffer intensely without them. In these situations, many commentators may argue that modifying a person’s personality through science is a moral action that decreases pain and improves an individual's quality of life. 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

etymology - Origin of the greeting "Sweet dreams".

Does anybody know the etymology of the phrase "sweet dreams"? I tried googling but did not find anything satisfying. Is this a relatively new phrase of the modern world or has this been in use for some time? I think it's the latter one. Answer The OED has the interjection as "a farewell to someone going to bed" from the 20th century: 1908 Sears Roebuck Catal. 198/1 Tenor Solos..Good Bye, Sweet Dreams, Good Bye. But it goes back until at least the 19th and possibly 18th centuries. John Wolcot, writing under the pseudonym of Peter Pindar, used it in his poem "Orson and Ellen; A Legendary Tale" published in 1801: Also from 1801 in The infernal Quixote (Page 287) by Charles Lucas: In the March 1776 of The Universal Magazine was published "The Serenade. A Pastoral Tale. From the German of Gesner" , where the shepherd Daphnis watches over his beloved as she sleeps and sings: The same tale appears in 1776's as Idyl XI, " Daphnis ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Is there a word/phrase for "unperformant"?

As a software engineer, I need to sometimes describe a piece of code as something that lacks performance or was not written with performance in mind. Example: This kind of coding style leads to unmaintainable and unperformant code. Based on my Google searches, this isn't a real word. What is the correct way to describe this? EDIT My usage of "performance" here is in regard to speed and efficiency. For example, the better the performance of code the faster the application runs. My question and example target the negative definition, which is in reference to preventing inefficient coding practices. Answer This kind of coding style leads to unmaintainable and unperformant code. In my opinion, reads more easily as: This coding style leads to unmaintainable and poorly performing code. The key to well-written documentation and reports lies in ease of understanding. Adding poorly understood words such as performant decreases that ease. In addressing the use of such a poorly ...
Post a Comment
Read more

What are the similarities between the relationships of the characters in The Outsiders and Romeo and Juliet?

At first glance, it might appear as if the characters in  The Outsiders  by S. E. Hinton and  Romeo and Juliet  by William Shakespeare do not have much in common; however, when one isolates the core of the conflicts, it becomes clear that the relationships in both stories are rooted in rivalry and secrecy.  In both  The Outsiders  and  Romeo and Juliet , an overarching theme is rivalry. While   socioeconomic status separates the greasers from the Socs in The Outsiders , last names separates the Montagues from the Capulets, who appear to be relatively equal in terms of socioeconomic status. Due to these rivalries, there are instances of deadly interactions in both stories. In  The Outsiders , Johnny kills Bob (whether his actions were justified or not is debatable). In  Romeo and Juliet , Romeo kills Tybalt and Paris, and Tybalt kills Mercutio. These deaths have profound effects on the main characters. In Ponyboy's case, the Johnny's death and other events in the novel inspire h...
Post a Comment
Read more