Secular ( non religious) views

1. Secular(non religious) views • Humanist views • Utilitarian views • Kantian views

2. What do Humaniststhink about embryo technology?

3. Not a religion Group of people who seek to live good lives without religious or superstitious beliefs. The British Humanist Association represents people with these beliefs. What is Humanism?

4. British Humanist Association (BHA) TheirVision: ‘A world without religious privilege or discrimination, where people are free to live good lives on the basis of reason, experience and shared human values.’

5. How do Humanists make decisions? • Humanists use reason, experience and respect for others when thinking about moral issues, not obedience to dogmatic rules • When deciding whether something is right or wrong, humanists consider the evidence and the probable effects of choices.

6. Some humanist views on embryo technology • Humanists respect life, but are not religious and so do not worry about "playing God" or believe in "the sanctity of life". (Human beings have been "playing God" for a long time, intervening beneficially in reproductive and medical processes.)

7. At the early stage where research is focused, an embryo has few of the characteristics we associate with a person. It is a fertilised human egg, with the capacity to develop into a person, but its cells have not yet begun to form into specialist cells that would form particular parts of the body (which is why they are potentially so useful). • There is no brain, no self-awareness (or consciousness), no way of feeling pain or emotion, so an early stage embryo cannot suffer.

8. Some humanist views on embryo technology • Humanists respect life, but are not religious and so do not worry about "playing God" • For humanists the most important consideration in questions about life and death is the quality of life of the individual person.

9. Humanists ask: • Whether the embryo is actually a person. • Whether the research on the embryo would do more good than harm.

10. If an embryo's cells can be used to alleviate human suffering, the good consequences seem to outweigh the harmful ones, Most humanists would support therapeutic cloning, because they do not consider very early embryos to be people, unlike some religious people.

11. Utilitarian views • Peter singer argues that a foetus is not a person so cannot make the same claim to life as a person. It is a cluster of cells. He argues that the use of embryos is a positive consequence for the majority

12. The use of embryos is acceptable provided its benefits can outweigh any drawbacks. Utilitarian's argue that the ‘spare’ embryos go to waste anyway – so we might as well get some benefit from them.

13. Kantian ethics • Kant would argue that since embryo research cannot be universalised, as the ending of one life to save another is contradictory then it is immoral. This can also be applied to IVF and PGD

14. Also Kant would question whether an embryo is a rational beings? Some might argue that they are not so could be used. However others believe that you are treating the embryos as a means to an end and Kant would not approve.

15. Things to know When does life begin? Christian / Muslim views on the start of life. Fertility treatments – IVF, AIH, AID, Surrogacy Arguments for and Against embryo research HFEA – who they are / what they do. Stem cell – therapeutic cloning Muslim, Christian , non- Religious views e.g. utilitarian- Peter Singer Humanist views Kantian ethics