Surrogacy

[poliphilo]

A childless friend of mine is considering surrogacy. I know what I feel- which is "yeuch"; I'm less sure what I think.  To help me make up my mind my friend sent me this article from The New York Times.  The author has had two kids with two different surrogates, is awfully pleased with the supremely ethical choices she has made- and seems to believe- as rich people so often do- that the people she is paying are smiling at her because they love her. She also descends, towards the end, into nauseating babytalk. The article hasn't changed my feelings. If anything it has hardened them- but I don't like finding myself on the same side as the Pope.  Are my objections atavistic and patriarchal or am I right to trust my gut? 

Comments

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

I suspect a lot of the people who opt for surrogacy don't really want a child, they want a baby.

[athenais.livejournal.com]

Specifically, what they (and it's usually a couple) really want is a child with their genetic heritage if at all possible. This woman didn't have viable eggs and couldn't carry to term, so they used an egg donor and surrogates both. Adoption would be to give up entirely on having a child of your body and lots of people want to try anything they can first to have their own child.

Also, adoption isn't that easy a road to take. Laws have been tightened up (rightfully, in my opinion) and it's expensive and there's a reason why so many people turned to places like Romania and China rather than adopt at home.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

The desire to hand on one's DNA is very basic. All animals have it. I guess it's coded in some fairly primitive region of the brain.

I agree about adoption laws.

[steepholm.livejournal.com]

Could the same not equally be said of many people who create a child more conventional means?

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

It certainly could.

For myself I greatly prefer children to babies. Babies are really rather dull.