This American movie star Arnold Schwarzenegger plays Adam Gibson in the movie The 6th Day. Adam is entangled in an illegal human cloning activity that separates him from his family. Thus, he must discover the reasons for cloning, figure out those responsible, and find how to handle the situation. The scenes of the protestors that scream about cloning do not go far. However, they drive the point home; the moral dilemma in the movie is cloning and its effects.
Several people have different perceptions on the moral aspects of socio-scientific issues like genetic engineering that often involve gene therapy and human cloning. At the same time, many of these issues emanate from dilemmas that involve biotechnology and human genetics. Over the past decade, human cloning has set out a serious debate on what is right and what is wrong with human cloning. As some people have vehemently supported cloning, others have ultimately opposed it. However, over the past years, with the help of technology, it became easy to clone mammals. This was first done in 1996 when Dolly, the sheep, was born. However, human cloning is one of the areas that require further research (Leong). Thus, this will take several attempts in order to clone a human being.
The movie raises many ethical questions that surround human cloning. When Adam goes home, he finds that his family is in the process of celebrating his surprise birthday with a human clone. Thus, Adam must continue running in order to protect himself. This is a clear indication of a moral dilemma in the sense that Drucker and Weir have misused the technology and created a human being, a replica of another person. Therefore, it is illegal in the sense that people may misuse the technology for the wrong purposes.
The movie attempts to engage in the issues behind human cloning. At the same time, human cloning has several advantages. For example, it is possible to use the technology to treat a person. The movie highlights the process of making human cloning possible. As much as it is possible to create an individual with similar personality, it is not possible to transfer all the physical and psychological aspects of another person. This is one point in which human cloning fails to pass the litmus test. In addition, with the use of the current technologies, it is hard to produce a clone of the same age with the original organism. The movie points out this serious moral dilemma. At the same time, the process does not incorporate any environmental effect (Leong). This is one of the factors that raise ethical dilemmas. Thus, this forms the basis for opposing human cloning.
Another moral dilemma in the movie emanates from the point where Adam’s wife request Adam to clone the dead dog Oscar. This is between the ninth and tenth minutes of the movie. Adam’s wife asks him to do that to prevent their daughter from suffering any loss from the death of the dog. In addition, the scene in which Hank tries to convince Adam that it is possible to clone the dog illustrates some of the ethical dilemmas in place. Thus, in the modern society, if we make such allowances for cloning, this will make cloning ubiquitous and raise moral issues with regard to the creation of exact replicas of organisms. Thus, this is one of the scenes that raise the morality of replacing organisms that have died (Cane). The question that one might ask here is whether it is morally right to create an organism that has died by cloning. Is it vital to replace an organism to avoid loss? At the same time, will this provide a mechanism that will enable grieving parents to tone down some of their feelings of the loss that they have incurred? Thus, in the end, as one tries to answer these questions, it is hard to explain the morality of the human cloning. Human cloning will not lay the foundation of assuaging the pain of loss. This ultimately explains that human cloning will not ease any suffering.
The moral dilemma in the movie also emanates from the point where Drucker his giving the speech on the benefits of human cloning. Drucker believes that human cloning has significant benefits like replacing sick individuals with healthy clones (Cane). However, this may not go in line with morality. Is it essential to replace an ailing individual with a clone? The answer to this question will be “no”. Thus, cloning should only form the basis of treating the ailing individuals, but not replacing them with clones. Cloning should lay the foundation of therapeutic cloning but not just replacing individuals with their replicas.
The movie also raises the ethical dilemmas with regard to the right of clones. At one point, Adam is observing his own clone. He feels that the clone is not even human, and it is not real. At the same time, Hank is wondering how people can differentiate between a clone and the real organism and if it is moral to consider them as different individuals (Cane). The movie provides a basis upon which individuals may discriminate against others.
In conclusion, the movie provides the flaws that exist in genetic engineering, especially in human cloning. Thus, it illuminates the ethical concerns and moral dilemmas in genetic engineering and gives the reasons for opposing human cloning.