Thursday, November 6, 2014
As we talked about enhancements, we talked about them rather negatively. Whether or not one believes that different enhancements are negative, I believe it is up to the person who is going to have the enhancement to decide that. It is their decision, they are going to have to live with it for the rest of their life, they should have the choice. Also I believe that any enhancement that is going to benefit one, make one's life better, should be seen as a positive thing, even if the enhancement is not necessary. Why should someone have to suffer with bad eyesight if there is an enhancement that is going to help them? Although laser eye surgery could be seen as an unnecessary enhancement, it is going to have a positive impact on someone's life, and why shouldn't that be okay?
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Personally, I think there has to be a reason people call them "enhancements." If they did not enhance a person in a positive fashion, then they would have a different name, since I believe they all could be positive unless they are botched jobs, of course. But I think they reason we talked about them in a negative way is because with each enhancement, a piece of our uniqueness is taken away from us. Each enhancement would often make us more similar to each other because of a societal notion that everybody should work towards being a certain way that is driven by corporations worldwide. In the end, I believe Amanda is right that the person getting the enhancement has the final decision of positive or negative, even with pressure and "advice" coming from all directions, be it family, friends, or the media.
ReplyDeleteBut what about Padge's example in class on wednesday? Why should working out be considered an enhancement? Taking care of your body is a necessity and if anything it should be considered something you are expected to do and thus making yourself average. Typing the word average got me thinking of another point. I do not understand why these "enhancements" are being looked upon in a negative fashion. Are we all expected to be average? Lucas talked about losing your uniqueness, but staying mediocre makes you fit in with the crowd; not improving yourself makes you undistinguishable from everyone else. Thus I would argue that without enchanting yourself, you have no uniqueness to begin with. Obviously there are extremes and they can be unhealthy, but to have a blanket answer that all enhancements are bad is clearly absurd.
ReplyDeleteFrom the comments above I would have to agree with the idea that not all enhancements should be considered negative. I do not think it is the enhancement itself that is positive or negative, but it is the reason behind it. A simpler, but similar, example I can think of is the idea of makeup. Some people think wearing makeup is bad. I think it has more to do with the reason the person is wearing makeup. The idea of makeup is that you are supposed to “enhance” or highlight your natural features. However, some people do not wear makeup for that reason. Instead they do it to make themselves look like someone else, to make others notice them, or to impress others. I think the same concept can be applied to some of the enhancements we talked about in class. I do not think wanting to have eye surgery is negative. From my guess the person wants to get an eye surgery so that they can see better. Now if someone told them to get an eye surgery because they looked ugly with glasses and the person got it for purely that reason that would be a different story. Same thing with Padge’s example of someone working out. I do not think working and becoming fit is a negative enhancement. The person is trying to have a happy and healthy lifestyle. Not to mention building values such as moderation, dedication, and perseverance. However, as I said earlier, if a guy or girl is only doing it to impress someone else and not really for the betterment of themselves it can become negative. It all depends on the person’s motive and reasoning behind wanting the enhancement that determines what kind of enhancement it is: positive or negative.
ReplyDeleteAlthough yes, I do believe that many enhancements can be considered a positive thing, after reading the McKenny article, it really made me wonder about the bigger picture. Our society is currently so focused and obsessed with enhancements, when you really think about it. We're always looking for the next best thing, how to be better, how to improve ourselves and our appearance, etc. As of now, procedures such as implants, liposuction, and botox are fairly common; however, not everybody has them. The same thing goes for mind enhancements such as Adderall. Some people choose to take them illegally to get ahead academically, but not everyone does. But as technology progresses and as these enhancements become more and more commonplace in our culture, isn't that obviously going to have a terrible negative effect on our outlook on life? Is there eventually going to be a time where we are all so accustomed to getting the results we want in our life that it affects our modesty and humbleness as human beings? Humans are supposed to make mistakes, and we are supposed to have flaws. Like Lucas said, they are what makes us unique. But if we keep using enhancements, then I feel like we would take away certain intrinsic human qualities that make us who we are. We might be more competitive with each other, and we might always be comparing to one another. I think it would definitely be harder to "accept people for who they are" because that concept wouldn't even apply; people wouldn't be who they are because they would just be who the enhancements make them!
ReplyDeleteI agree with you Amanda. In class it seemed as though we were saying all enhancements were a negative thing. I could see how one could classify things such as plastic surgery (unnecessary plastic surgery) could be seen as superfluous. Things such as laser eye surgery or a hip replacement are enhancements that I agree should be judged based on what they do to improve the quality of life rather than the fact that they are unnatural enhancements.
ReplyDelete-April Currey
I think an enhancement is considered positive or negative based on the perceived morality of the enhancement. I feel as though plastic surgery for the purpose of just altering one's appearance is considered negative because it is so superfluous. I agree with April, but would just add that we would also separate these things based on how society views them as either moral or unmoral.
ReplyDeleteI think that enhancements do not always have to be bad either. If an enhancement is helping someone, they should get it. Medical advancements should be utilized for people that need them. However, I do agree with Maureen that if people have the mentality that they can get an enhancement for everything that they want, it does change the scope of our culture. If someone gets a nose job to fix there nasal canal, is that different from someone getting a nose job because they do not like the shape? Where are we supposed to draw the line? It is hard to determine whether or not each person’s individual case is helpful or not, but I do agree that we as a society more easily accept these kinds of changes. Why can we not accept who we are? Were there other methods people used in the past without technology to change their appearances?
ReplyDeleteI was actually thinking about these types of enhancements recently because a friend of mine was thinking of taking medicine to improve her anxiety. I personally believe that enhancements are created to make positive changes in a person's life and should be used if that person wants to take advantage of them. And many others do see them in this way otherwise these enhancements would not be so popular. But my friend did bring up a good point, that is what happens when the enhancements go wrong? In her case, she was worried the anxiety drugs might give her an artificial sense of life in that her emotions would be toned down. This made me think about how I would feel if an enhancement I used turned out to make my life worse. For this reason, I believe that enhancements should be used with caution. Weighing the pros and cons is never a bad thing, and making an informed decision is the best way to go. Whatever decision is made though I believe should be left up to the person in question, and no one else should judge another for an enhancement used. Enhancements are not always bad, but it is best to be safe with them.
ReplyDeleteI believe enhancements can be a good thing depending on the intention. If you get plastic surgery because people make fun of you or a significant other says you should get it or they will break up with you. Then I think it's a terrible decision to make based off of that. But, if you are already taking care of yourself and you feel like it will boost your confidence a little bit, then I think it's the own person's decision.
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