Abstract
Am I the owner of my body? In what sense? Is it mine or is it me? What is the difference between proper and property, own and ownership? Am I my proper body, or have I the property of my body? Are there property rights in relation with the body? Can I donate or gift my own organs? Can I sell them? Should the state be permitted to expropriate some organs of my body in view of the common good? These are some of the questions raised by the new biomedical technology, specially organ transplants and genetic engineering. Bioethicists must consider these questions, and propose serious, clear and practical solutions. What is in danger is so important that we must be extremely cautious. And one of the first things we should do in such a situation is to look back and see if we can learn from the lessons of history.
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Gracia, D. (1998). Ownership of the Human Body: Some Historical Remarks. In: Ten Have, H.A.M.J., Welie, J.V.M. (eds) Ownership of the Human Body. Philosophy and Medicine, vol 59. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-015-9129-4_6
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-015-9129-4_6
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