Ever since Jack KirÂby and Stan Lee creÂatÂed the very first installÂment of the The UncanÂny X‑Men for MarÂvel in 1963, the beloved team of mutant superÂheroes known as the X‑Men have conÂquered almost every mediÂum in popÂuÂlar culÂture from teleÂviÂsion to video games, to movies and of course comÂic books. Their endurÂing popÂuÂlarÂiÂty isn’t hard to underÂstand: What AmerÂiÂcan teenagÂer (redunÂdant, we know, since all AmerÂiÂcans are basiÂcalÂly teenagers) could ever say no to an angsty band of telegenic outÂsiders who are perÂpetÂuÂalÂly reviled and perÂseÂcutÂed for the very attribÂutÂes that make them supeÂriÂor?
But there’s more than narÂcisÂsism at play. The core of the X‑Men myth — genetÂic mutaÂtion — is someÂthing sciÂenÂtists have been learnÂing how to manipÂuÂlate for decades, and now it’s just a matÂter of time before we know how to build X‑Men of our own. But just as in the case of nuclear bombs, killer virusÂes and 3‑D action movies, the fact that we can make them doesÂn’t mean we should. In the above video from Emory UniÂverÂsiÂty, Bioethics proÂfesÂsor Paul Root Wolpe explores this moral dilemÂma via the latÂest iterÂaÂtion of the beloved mutants’ saga: X‑Men: First Class (In theÂaters June 3rd, and, praise be to Mendel, NOT in 3‑D).
SheerÂly Avni is a San FranÂcisÂco-based arts and culÂture writer. Her work has appeared in Salon, LA WeekÂly, MothÂer Jones, and many othÂer pubÂliÂcaÂtions. You can folÂlow her on twitÂter at @sheerly.
