originally published 9/2/2013
Ethicist Gilbert Meilaender, author of Should We Live Forever? The Ethical Ambiguities of Aging (Eerdmans, 2013), explains why anti-aging research cannot be a metaphysically neutral topic, and argues against the utopianism of escaping the body. The interview includes an audio clip of Ray Kurzweil discussing the body’s disposability, and Meilaender points out why this futuristic hope is both unlikely and unwise. The desire to leave the body has its roots in the modern liberal tradition, and has to do with possessing versus being a body. Meilaender argues that this idea of remaking ourselves without any limit is an example of inappropriate desire for control, while recognizing the complexities inherent in these “ethical ambiguities.” This interview was originally published on Volume 118 of the Journal.
23 minutes
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duration 22:35
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