title: [Human technical enhancement: an introduction to the currents of the debate as well as their fracture lines].
abstract: The main objective of this article is to suggest a panel of the different positions active in the human enhancement's debate, to analyze their arguments and to point out the dividing zones. The transhumanist movement is therefore presented in order to highlight the principal thematic of its philosophy, its means of action and the plurality of its subgroups. The purpose is to reassess its complexity in an introductory manner far from the usual, excessive simplifications. In a second time, the "bioconservative" movement is also examined in its foundations to emphasize the norms and principles that are undoubtedly shared by the opponents to the human being's modification. Then, the thinkers of the "liberal ethics" are exemplified as a more moderate alternative, although not flawless. Generally open-minded towards the application of enhancement technologies, they protect as an ultimate guardian, the harm principle, as well as the absolute respect of individual freedom. Once the protagonists are introduced, the true meaning of these positions is replaced in the context of the three main fracture lines: the human nature, the normality criterion and the equality principle. A complex debate indeed that we could summarize by a simple question: what will human do about the human in the 21st century?
authors.affiliation: Université Libre de Bruxelles. laurent.frippiat@ulb.ac.be
authors.forename: Laurent
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Frippiat
mesh_terms: D024803:Biomedical Enhancement / Q000941:ethics*; D040821:Human Characteristics; D006801:Humans; D010684:Philosophy