Cultural Analysis of "Genetically Engineered Babies? Experts Debate Idea Of 'Designer Baby' Ban"

Cultural Analysis of

 "Genetically Engineered Babies? Experts Debate Idea Of 'Designer Baby' Ban"

When reading a piece of writing it is necessary to determine the culture and context in which the piece was written. Determining this will lead to better understanding of where the author is coming from and what his or her background is. Below is an analysis of the cultural attributes of the article regarding genetic engineering. 

Mayhew, Stu. "Genetic Engineering" 12/3/12 via flickr. Creative Commons Attribution

• Cultural Key Words: 
• Genetic Modification: This phrase is repeated a number of times throughout the article and it is a main point not only because it is the main focus of the article but also because it is a relatively new idea. This is different than saying "genetically engineered" because the word modification provides a different reasoning that makes the topic more relatable to the audience and helps it fit in the cultural context rather than implementing a more foreign term to sound more scientifically accurate. 
• Desirable traits: This phrase is a very subjective one that could mean different things depending on the person you talk to. This is very apparent in today's culture when it seems that much of the world revolves around social media posts and what they convey to other people about a specific person. To a teenage girl desirable traits could include being "thin" and looking "pretty" where as a mother's desirable trait for her child could be "healthy" and "happy". 
• Thesis: Proponents of genetic engineering believe that it could lead to reproduction of more health children with fewer diseases as will as mitochondrial abnormalities while opponents of this scientific concept believe that it could lead to societal attempts to achieve perfection by creating "designer babies".