Redefining the Boundaries of Humanity. Transhumanism and Posthumanism in the Perspective of Biotechnologies. Edited by Jana Tomašovičová and Bogumiła Suwara.

Recent advancements in biotechnology have led to improvement and innovation in two distinct directions: the therapeutic methods which are intended to heal, and the enhancement of human capabilities beyond their natural state.is development has been of interest not only to the natural sciences but also to multiple academic elds within the humanities.Philosophy, ethics, sociology, or the arts examine the impending transformation of the human subject and the subsequent e ects arising from it.Furthermore, the necessity to reevaluate and potentially rede ne humanistic concepts that-since the era of Enlightenment-have been held inviolate is becoming increasingly more acknowledged.Academic discourse adopts both a retrospective and a future-oriented approach.While the former approach involves rede ning humanistic ideas in light of new technologies and shi s in cultural and philosophical paradigms, the latter focuses on the impact of biotechnological development on individual or societal levels.Within this context, the image of the future enhanced human being is analyzed by philosophical works, which may embrace a techno-optimistic view or a non-anthropocentric one, elaborating on postmodern and poststructuralist concepts.Genetically modi ed humans or entirely non-human beings portrayed in visual, literary, or performing arts are o en set in contrast to the conventional human forms, identities, and relationships.e enhancement of cognitive or emotional capacities is explored by ethicists who may question whether such modi cations are justi ed.Additionally, inequalities that emerge due to di erences between the enhanced and the non-enhanced are examined within a sociological framework.ese are only some of the many examples in which the academic disciplines of the humanities interact with advances in biotechnology.