. Are Kates eggs just property her parents could inherit? 2. Should they make a child without Kates explicit consent? Wo

This is a Q and A forum. Your initial post must be a reply to my first post.

Read the following case study and answer the questions listed below.

Your responses must incorporate the framework of Ross’s ethic of prima facie duties. That is, you should identify and describe the relevant details of this case as you see them in terms of the prima facie duties generated by the circumstances.  And, if you feel it is warranted, you may also refer back to the key principles and concepts of deontology (Kantian ethics) and utilitarianism. Read the case closely, as in previous semesters students have gone way off track by ignoring or misinterpreting a key detail.

Case 6: Nest Eggs

Soon after Chuck and Kate married, they learned she had Hodgkins lymphoma and that the treatment would probably limit her ability to conceive and carry a fetus to term. So, prior to starting treatments, they went through the process of in vitro fertilization. Because neither of them felt they would be able to focus on raising a child right then, even one birthed by a surrogate mother, they chose to freeze the viable embryos. As a further precaution, they stored several eggs and vials of sperm.

Kate survived several years of treatments, but her marriage didnt. Although Kate would have liked to hire a surrogate who would gestate one or two of the frozen embryos, she acknowledged Chucks right to abandon a plan begun during a happier time. She also put off deciding what to do with her stored eggs. She was ambivalent about raising a child as a single parent and ultimately chose to focus on regaining her health and her once active life.

Only a few years later, however, she died in a car accident, leaving behind neither spouse nor offspring. In her will she directed that her parents receive complete title to all her property. Kate had been an only child, so her parents grieved not only their loss of a daughter but also the lost prospect of grandchildren. In one meeting with the probate lawyer, they voiced this regret. The lawyer suggested they use Kates frozen eggs as, perhaps, Kate herself would have wanted them to do: acquire some sperm through a sperm bank, hire a surrogate to gestate the fetus, and raise the child themselves.

The suggestion comforted Kates parents but left them with many questions.

Questions

1. Are Kates eggs just property her parents could inherit?

2. Should they make a child without Kates explicit consent? Would they be doing the right thing?

3. What are the ethical issues or questions raised by this case?

4. How do you think we should best deal with this case? That is, how would you advise Kate’s parents?

This assignment is worth 50 points and is part of your Forum grade. Your initial post is worth up to 30 points, and your two follow-up posts are worth 10 points each. Your replies must be substantive. A sufficiently thoughtful set of responses to the initial questions should total roughly 500-600 words. Each response to a classmate should be at least 75 words.

To earn full credit your assignment must demonstrate effort, thoughtfulness, and comprehension.

In addition, you must properly do an least two (2) in-text citations from the textbook. Do not worry about a Works Cited page, but do include the page number from the textbook for your citations. (There is no need to cite the case itself.) Please review the information at