Skip to main content
  • Book
  • © 2017

The Ethics of Choosing Children

Palgrave Macmillan

Authors:

  • Considers reservations about the ethics of choosing children
  • Draws on ethicists outside the scope of orthodox bioethical thought
  • Explores the implications of the idea of procreative beneficience
  • Includes supplementary material: sn.pub/extras

Part of the book series: Palgrave Studies in Ethics and Public Policy (PASEPP)

Buy it now

Buying options

eBook USD 44.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book USD 59.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book USD 59.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Other ways to access

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check for access.

Table of contents (5 chapters)

  1. Front Matter

    Pages i-ix
  2. Bioethical Burdens of Proof

    • Simon Reader
    Pages 1-27
  3. Gift and Beneficence

    • Simon Reader
    Pages 29-54
  4. Creation Lottery and Mother Trouble

    • Simon Reader
    Pages 55-80
  5. The Maternal Gift of Life

    • Simon Reader
    Pages 81-106
  6. Natality and Generations

    • Simon Reader
    Pages 107-135
  7. Back Matter

    Pages 137-140

About this book

This book takes the contentious issue of designer babies and argues against the liberal eugenic current of bioethics that commends the logic and choice regimes of selective reproduction. Against conceptions of Procreative Beneficence that trade on a disregard for the gifts of maternal bodies, it seeks to recover a thought of maternal giving and a more hospitable ethic of generational beneficence. Exploring themes of responsibility, gift and natality, the book refigures the experience of reproduction as the site of an ethical response to future generations, where refusal to choose one’s children is one virtuous response. The book will appeal to anyone with an interest in reproductive ethics, feminist thought and those seeking principled grounds for resisting the technologies of choosing children.

Reviews

“This is an exciting, perceptive and theoretically sophisticated contribution to vital conversations across the academic disciplines. Reader extends the horizons of bioethics to engage issues of gender, gift and responsibility in relation to future generations. The book should be read and discussed widely.” (Rachel Muers, Senior Lecturer in Christian Studies, Leeds University, UK)

“This is a timely and challenging book. At a point in our biotechnological development when ‘choosing children’ is becoming technically feasible, it is vital to examine critically some of our most dearly held assumptions about normativity, choice and control. Simon Reader’s book extends the standard bioethical discussion of reproductive decision making beyond the realm of personal preferences to incorporate social, philosophical, historical and gendered perspectives that will enrich these collective deliberations.” (Jackie Leach Scully, Professor of Social Ethics and Bioethics, Newcastle University, UK)>

Authors and Affiliations

  • Keele University, Newcastle-under-Lyme, United Kingdom

    Simon Reader

About the author

Simon A. Reader is an Honorary Research Fellow in the School of Politics, Philosophy, International Relations and Environment (SPIRE) at Keele University, UK, where he also teaches. Simon has also held the position of Research Associate at Lancaster University, where he completed his doctorate.

Bibliographic Information

  • Book Title: The Ethics of Choosing Children

  • Authors: Simon Reader

  • Series Title: Palgrave Studies in Ethics and Public Policy

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-59864-2

  • Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan Cham

  • eBook Packages: Religion and Philosophy, Philosophy and Religion (R0)

  • Copyright Information: The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s) 2017

  • Hardcover ISBN: 978-3-319-59863-5Published: 20 September 2017

  • Softcover ISBN: 978-3-319-86721-2Published: 11 August 2018

  • eBook ISBN: 978-3-319-59864-2Published: 02 September 2017

  • Series ISSN: 2946-2738

  • Series E-ISSN: 2946-2746

  • Edition Number: 1

  • Number of Pages: IX, 140

  • Topics: Bioethics, Moral Philosophy, Feminism, Humanism

Buy it now

Buying options

eBook USD 44.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book USD 59.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book USD 59.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Other ways to access