Social Construction of the Fetus: Reflections on the Development of Anthropology of Selective Reproductive Technologies

Advances in the assisted and selective reproductive technologies have changed the meaning and significance of the fetus and child in the world. For the first time, reproductive selection takes place before birth in order to prevent the birth of children with fetal abnormalities and allowing only "healthy" children to live. These technologies, which migrate to developing countries over time, are not neutral products. Rather, as Foucault asserted, they are “apparatus’’ that are situated at the heart of the figuration of indigenous culture as “cultural form”. Usually, medical pioneers legitimize, normalize, and standardize these innovations in a temporal and historical process, removing barriers and taboos. This is where birth changes from a purely biological matter or a personal choice to an economic, political, cultural and social one. In other words, governments have moved beyond quantity of population control over the past few decades to control the quality of population. Therefore, having a healthy child is not just an individual fantasy, but its realization depends, to a large extent on government policies. The purpose of this article is to pay attention to the necessity of anthropological studies in this field, and to this question whether application of these technologies is necessary or useful.  We also intend to propose related study methods and theories to study this social process, which changes the cultural meanings and implications of the concept of fetus and child, and government policies which routinize the implementation of this technologies in Iran.