BAC Anglais LV1 - The Idea of Progress

THE IDEA OF PROGRESSF

• I’m going to talk about the notion “The idea of progress”. I’m going to state a definition of progress. Progress is the idea that the world and the society can evolve positively in terms of sciences, technology and living conditions. It’s an improvement which contributes to make the world better. The question is: Does science can be seen as a quest for our own good? First, I will speak about the improvement of science and finally the misuse of science.

-Scientific research has often resulted in medical advances. For example, the method of designer baby. The PGD, the technique used by scientists, is very helpful for adults who can’t have children. It enables to save human lives or to screen for diseases, which can be eradicated thanks to this breakthrough. By altering genes, genetics attempt to avoid diseases. This is what we saw in a press article extract appeared in CHS Globe Online on the 29th of January 201, which focused on PGD. But science is also a mean of healing patients. The PGD enables to save human lives. An article which was published in USA Today, the 1st October 2010 talks about Molly Nash, a teenager who was saved by the PGD. She suffered from a rare disease, “Fanconi’s Amnemia” and she could have died without the help of her brother Adam, a medicine baby created by the PGD. Molly received a bone marrow transplant from Adam. Now aged 15, she lives a normal life. As a conclusion we may say that science can improve life expectancy and cure many diseases.

-But sometimes there can be a misuse of science. On the one hand, science can eradicate diseases and save human lives. But there is a risk that scientists are playing god with their experiments and may threaten the balance of our society. There can be a misuse of science as with Eugenics. We studied a cartoon which illustrate this misuse. In the cartoon there are clowns which are being manufactured. They are all the same. Eugenics may lead here to the disappearance of the weaker groups, physically and psychologically. Eugenics is a technique which can be detrimental to individuals. There can be a kind of dehumanization. There’s a risk of identity loss in a social environment where we would all look alike. We can see the same effects in “Science babies”, an extract which appeared in Aldous Huxley Brave New World. Babies are in incubators, in fertilization center. These babies factories lead to the creation of an unfair society with the rich living longer than the poor and some people can become second class, because of this process.

Conclusion: As a conclusion, we have seen how science can mean progress for human lives. Nevertheless, the misuse of science can lead to detrimental effects. There can be a way to reconciliate both sides if we regulated scientific progress through ethical laws, especially in medical experiments. We have to make sure that scientists carry out their experiments advisedly, and that they can’t play god.

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