S.A. Phillips’s scientific contributions

The Abolition of Man, written over 60 years ago by C. S. Lewis, focuses on the importance of objective values. In it, Lewis asserts that a person cannot be fully human without the existence of objective values. He explores the basis for objective values and imagines a scenario in which the pursuit of the control of human nature through scientific technology would by the nature of the project separate itself from objective values and lead to the abolition of man. However, what he imagines might happen by the hundredth century A.D. is beginning to be possible in the twenty first. Research on germline gene transmission in animals suggests that germline genetic modification capable of changing the future of the human genome may be possible in the near future. Germline genetic modification is the focus of an extensive ongoing ethical discussion. This includes issues of safety, justice, and the limitations of human subject research. A major focus in the discussion is the issue of whether germline genetic modification for enhancement is ethically distinct from that done for therapy or prevention and whether genetic enhancement of future generations should be allowed. An analysis of Lewis's thoughts in The Abolition of Man adds an insightful perspective to the contemporary discussion of whether human germline genetic enhancement should be permitted.