Towards an Ethical Subject

Guo Wen is a professor at the School of Foreign Languages and Literature, Suzhou University of Science and Technology, China. She is mainly engaged in the studies of science fiction, unnatural narrative, and ethical literary criticism.

‘Cloning embodies the highest dream of technology. Science-fiction is the genre in which this dream has been both magnified and criticized. Deploying an extraordinary array of perspectives, Guo Wen leaves no clone unturned to blend ethical questions with rewarding close readings of key texts, thus providing an exciting and original survey of the joined fields of “science” and “fiction.”’Jean-Michel Rabaté, University of Pennsylvania and American Academy of the Arts and Sciences‘Guo Wen’s monograph represents a significant and original contribution to the field of science fiction studies. Applying the distinctive framework of Literary Ethical Criticism developed within Chinese literary theory, the work offers a compelling analysis of clone narratives. By examining the tension between scientific choice and ethical choice through the lens of the Sphinx’s riddle, the study provides fresh perspectives on the evolving nature of humanity in the posthuman age. This thoughtful integration of Chinese theoretical approaches with global science fiction scholarship makes the book an important and timely addition to contemporary literary criticism.’Nie Zhenzhao, President of the International Association for Ethical Literary Criticism and International Fellow of the British Academy and a Foreign Member of the Academia Europaea

• 1. Introduction 2. Human Cloning Science Fiction and the Identity of Clones 3. Coexistence of Clones and Natural Humans: Identity Quest in Ethical Chaos 4. Cloned Individuals and Groups: The Metaphor of Replication and Identity 5. Clones and Society: Utopias or Dystopias 6. Conclusion