Issues in Reproductive Technology: An Anthology

Issues in Reproductive Technology: An Anthology

"A remarkable collection of scholarly essays, philosophical discussions, and ethical arguments concerning reproductive choices." — Choice It seems as if every week there is a new case involving reproductive technologies that raises provocative, often painful questions: What policies should be followed by centers that preserve human embryos? Are such innovations as Norplant improvements over established methods of contraception? Should R.U. 486 be available in the U.S.? Is prenatal diagnosis an ethically acceptable step to limiting the number of disabled people? These are just some of the vital questions explored in this timely work which offers incisive analysis of the plethora of issues raised by advances in reproductive medicine. The book's major section cover abortion, contraception, cryopreservation of gametes and embryos, surrogate motherhood, and psychosocial issues of in-vitro fertilization. In each section, introductory essays by recognized authorities such as Elizabeth Bartholet and Andrea L. Bonnicksen are followed by critical articles by professionals in such fields as women's health, medicine, biology, sociology, politics, and philosophy. In assessing a technology, the authors present well-argued analyses of problems created by that technology, including views from advocates and practitioners that raise attendant ethical and practical issues. Moving seamlessly from comparative history to transnational history, this book offers a new model of scholarly analysis. It demonstrates the vitality of the new transnational movement in historical studies and shows why women's history is in the vanguard of that movement.-Kathryn Kish Sklar, In this insightful and well-researched study, Erika Kuhlman refocuses our analytical gaze at the Great War through the lens of widows' views and experiences and by examining how nation-states attempted to use widows to militarize and nationalize the war and postwar years. Widows found empty promises, insufficient support and a less-than reciprocal citizenship from nations eager to cast them as symbols of national sacrifice and proper womanhood. Some cooperated with national plans but others challenged state-sponsored programs and definitions of their womanhood and citizenship. Some transcended the boundaries of the nation-state by identifying with other women as widows through transnational identities and activism. A particular strength of Kuhlman's work is her comparative analysis of widowhood and the Great War across national experiences and her identification of the ways that widowhood became a catalyst for some women to challenge nationalism and militarism, a process that continues This is a pathbreaking study, filling a major gap in our understanding of the way the wounds of war were inscribed on women's lives for decades after the Great War. Essential reading for all those drawn in increasing numbers to the Ur-catastrophe of the 20th century.-Jay Winter, Helen Bequaert Holmes is an independent scholar with a Ph.D. in genetics. She co-edited Birth Control and Controlling Birth and Feminist Perspectives on Medical Ethics , a book based from two special issues of the journal Hypatia. Used Book in Good Condition