Reproductive cloning and value of children

Abstract

It is sometimes argued that if reproductive human cloning were available to parents who lost a child, the possibility of replication of the child would lead to its devaluation. This argument seems to presuppose a view of the relationship between parents and children according to which parental love is loosely linked to children’s identities. The value of a child for a parent, it is assumed, stems from its being a person or genetically linked to its parents. Against this view I offer a more adequate account of parental relationship. It is based on the idea that the value of a child to its parents is grounded in how it shapes their lives and personalities. If reproductive cloning were ever available, it would be no viable option for parents who lost a child. Parents who value their child for who it is, and not just for its being a person or a progeny genetically related to them, value the child too much to want to replicate it when it dies. Parents who value their child for reasons other than who it is, value it too little to clone it when it is lost.