Birthrights

Should surrogacy be allowed? What guidelines are needed to control in vitro fertilization programmes? What should we tell the children born in the wake of the 'reproduction revolution' about their origins? These are typical of the many issues addressed in a book which seeks to challenge the ethical basis for much of the legal regulation of matters surrounding birth. First published in hardback in spring 1989, Birthrights deals with a controversial area which continues to be at the centre of much public debate. The editors' new preface, especially written for the paperback edition, surveys important developments in legislation since the book's first publication.

`An important commentary on, as well as a contribution to, the state of the debate in the UK' - Ruth Chadwick, Bioethics`The contributing authors provide excellent discussion of such issues as whether pregnancy and birth yield rights or have deeper meaning respecting the reproductive identity of the woman; the basic incapacity of courts and judges to deal with such powerful biological matters; and the ultimate question: what do we tell the children born from these biomedical marvels. An intelligent resource that is highly recommended for public and academic collections' - D.R. Shanklin, University of Chicago`For those whose access to the English journals is more limited this volume has the added advantage of making readily available a representative of collection of the thoughts of radical English academics on problems of law and ethics at the beginning of human life.' - Jonathan Montgomery, International Journal of Law and the Family`...the book is well written, easy to read and relatively jargon-free. It could be read with profit, not only by doctors, lawyers, social workers and others directly concerned with the new problems of reproductive medicine but also by politicians whose decisions could have such important implications for future developments.' - The Heythrop Journal