What Gattaca What It Means To Be Human

The definition of humanity, by the dictionary, is human nature or the condition of being human. How is one to understand what “being human” is if there is nothing said on how to do so? Does the condition of being human mean to be civilized? Educated? Being able to communicate? Does it mean to be powerful? Most people would say that these are definitely qualities a human being must possess, but they seem to forget about the meaningful qualities one should possess. There are qualities that people are naturally born with and there are others that people must develop. Over this course there were two readings in particular that emphasized that we, as people, are born with certain qualities but these qualities are not to be our sole definition; …show more content…
In the film Gattaca, the well-off people were superior to others due to genetic enhancement and the main character of the film was subpar to most since he was a “Godchild” which means he had no genetic motification. Throughout this film, he made it clear that he would achieve his dreams, despite his genetic weaknesses. Altogether, being human is about pursuing our dreams and to not let our genders or what others may consider our weaknesses get in the way of accomplishing our goals and to develop meaningful characteristics of benevolence and will. Eliot reinforces this by her examinations on how to reduce the inherent differences between men and women; Gattaca establishes that we are not true people if we do not have struggles, will, goals, and the ability to get past our …show more content…
Gattaca proves that people are more than their flaws as long as they work hard towards their dreams. Eliot’s article verifies that all people are innately flawed, but with proper guidance, it is possible to overcome what was once inherent. Personally, these pieces absolutely confirm my beliefs about what it means to be human. We are flawed creatures, but that does not mean that is all we are. We as a society have a duty to one another which is why I agree with Eliot; she has discovered what is “wrong” with boys and girls, but she provides insight on how to minimize these flaws so the two could be equal. Vincent struggled greatly in his life, but he continued to work hard until he achieved his goal to be in space. In order to be human, one must struggle because if they do not, they will never know how much they could genuinely accomplish; through love of their dream, hard work, the will to persevere, and to not only accept their flaws, but to accept that they are more than their weaknesses is what being human is about. Not only are these personal factors attributes of being human, but being benevolent and helping others, as Eliot does throughout her article, is what being human is about. As a human being, we have duties to ourselves and to