In totality, is this process of intercountry surrogacy ethical? Shanley asks us to contemplate this. Many people profit from these transactions including the individuals requesting the surrogacy services, the surrogate performing the service, as well as the lawyers, doctors, and brokers involved. But is this necessarily a bad thing? It depends on how you view surrogacy, and Molly Shanley sees more good coming from these services than bad. Shanley claims that, even though services are being exchanged for money in a major way here (in that a person is being created from these interactions), the simple fact that these women are able to exercise free choice in choosing this option to improve their lives and subsequently the lives of others is enough to make intercountry surrogacy an important service in the global marketplace. Still, however, she admits that those that are uneasy about this "commodification" of women's bodies are not without valid concerns. She offers a number of ways in which this concern can be viewed and how intercountry surrogacy needs to be improved in the future, but ultimately, she leaves it to our generation to address these global issues.
In terms of where I stand on the ethicality of intercountry surrogacy, I still cannot take a stand one way or another. I do see the agency that these women have in choosing this option, and I am not discounting that option or belittling this choice. However, my concern is that the surrogate is still being exploited. It is true that she makes a substantial amount of money by performing the services, but she does this through the process of pregnancy which is life-changing for a woman whether she keeps the child or not. Not only does her body go through physical changes, but incredible emotional and mental ones as well. I am concerned that the surrogate-- who does not even retain all of the money for her services-- is not being adequately compensated. I understand that contracts are involved and that the prices of these services are difficult to measure, but how confident should we be in the mother's full understanding of the process? It seems that these women understand that they will receive money and will produce the child, but do the surrogates fully understand the associated risks and changes that will come as a result of their services? I wonder if the dire need for the money surpasses their concerns in these other ways, and what could happen to them down the road if they realize that this way of thinking was too shortsighted. Here, I will concede that perhaps this is simply my Western notion of pregnancy that could be fueling my worries, but still, I think this is something to be considered. Additionally, Shanley mentioned that medical services were provided for the surrogate throughout the pregnancy, but I wonder if counseling services are included as well, and if so, how long would these continue after the services are completed (meaning the child is born)? Also, are these women evaluated emotionally and mentally before they undertake this task to assess if they can fully handle the responsibilities?
I am interested in the direction of intercountry surrogacy in the future. As Shanley said, it will be up to our generation to address these issues, and I do hope that more research can be done to verify that the money that the surrogates make actually has a positive impact on their lives. Ultimately, I think that if this can be proven to be the case, and that other concerns such as the ones that I've raised are addressed, then intercountry surrogacy could be deemed ethical. Until then, I remain on the fence.
I believe that the idea of intercountry surrogacy is an unbelievable opportunity for the women involved. The premise that these people could be making 10 years worth of income in a short 9 months is the opportunity of a lifetime. I perhaps may not be completely right since I am a male and cannot fully appreciate the process of gestation, but I think that anything a mother can do to make the lives of her children better is something that she ought to do. I know that my mother, if we were in the same circumstances as the women from India, would jump at the opportunity to bring in such a large sum of money. Also, I think that the women do fully understand what they are getting themselves into, because I think she mentioned that most of the women chosen, were ones that already had children themselves. I find myself relating this back to the Singer article that we recently read in class. Since people are looking for surrogates anyway, why not look to people that are seriously in desperate need and could use the money. Maybe it can be considered exploitation since it is so much less expensive than doing it here in the United States, but we are already accustomed to getting things cheaper and outsourcing our American products that I don't believe it is truly that big of an issue. I think that renting the womb is an accurate statement even though it does seem to draw a negative connotation. Lastly, I find myself agreeing with T'Kia in that I would like to see further research on the impact on the lives of the surrogates, since it will be our generation that ultimately figures out this ethical situation.
ReplyDeleteThe point T'Kia raises in terms of not only the health implications, but also the potential psychological and mental effects of surrogacy, is a valid, thoughtful reflection on the issue. I will concede that surrogacy would be a more effective and beneficial process if women were thoroughly educated about the process and informed about the potential implications. Ultimately though, I don't think that the lacking of this information in the process undermines the ethicality of surrogacy. The choice to have your womb "rented out" is an individual decision and a person should have the right to do what they want with their body and discern for themselves if the potential cons will outweigh the pros. Maybe a woman would prefer to finance her family of six and is willing to do that at the possible cost of mental or physical health. It is not a mandate for women to sign up to be surrogates; it is a choice. While I understand T'Kia's concern about the mental and physical implications of pregnancy, poverty also potentially bears similar consequences. An outsider cannot deem whether the lifestyle of having little to no money to provide food for your family could be more harmful than carrying a baby for nine months only to give he or she up. It is the woman's life and I think she should have the opportunity to make choices about that life on her own.
ReplyDeleteI think that inter-country surrogacy in and of itself is not particularly unethical in any way. The only thing that we really need to worry about is ways in which it can be abused. For example, as T'Kia mentions, it is, in a way, a very positive prospect for women, because it offers them the ability to make a choice and earn money for themselves independently. However, in various patriarchal and misogynistic cultures, would this really be the case? There is very much potential for abuse if, say, a woman't husband or father forces her to participate in surrogacy against her will. It would be very difficult to know for certain if the surrogate was being exploited by someone else. To be honest though, I think that there is a certain amount of narcissism involved in going through all the trouble of finding, negotiating with, and hiring a surrogate rather than just adopting. It shouldn't be that important that a family's child should be genetically the same as them, and the world is already most likely overpopulated.
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