Ethical Implications of Artificial Reproductive Technologies

Abstract

This paper seeks to explore the philosophical and ethical implications of artificial reproductive
technologies. Over the past few decades, advances in assisted reproductive technologies have enabled
individuals, especially infertile couples, to bear children in increasingly complex ways, leading to a
range of ethical issues. The work sees artificial reproductive technological procedures from a
utilitarian point of view. Utilitarianism, which is a form of consequentialism, holds that acts are never
right or wrong in themselves, but only because of their consequences. Hence, it avers that the amount
of good brought into being must be for the greatest possible number of people. Given the utilitarian
posture of assisted reproductive technologies, one wonders if the procedures of the assisted
reproductive technologies take cognisance of the dignity of the human person, who should not be
treated as a means to an end but as an end in itself. The work adopted qualitative method in collecting
and analysing non-numerical data on assisted reproduction. The paper discovers that true to its
utilitarian tendencies, assisted reproductive technologies have brought about the greatest good for the
greatest number of individuals, but their irrational use threatens to disrobe man and to treat him as a
machine. The study revealed that assisted reproduction bring about the separation of conception from
sexual intercourse thereby causing disorientation of marital values and bond, and distorted identity
and parenthood. The paper concluded that ART should be rejected because it is riddled with ethical
problems. It recommended employment of Natural Reproductive Technology (NaProTechnology) to
effectively address the ethical dilemmas posed by artificial reproductive technologies in order to
protect the rights of all parties involved.