The Transhumanism Movement in General Terms and Its View of Humanity

Abstract

This study examines the transhumanism movement, which has recently gained attention and is becoming increasingly popular, along with its historical background, focusing on how the transhumanism movement’s approach to the concept of human. By exploring the emergence and development of the term “transhumanism,” the ideas of its prominent representatives, such as Julian Huxley, Nick Bostrom, Stefan Sorgner, Max More, and Ray Kurzweil, are analyzed, and the discussions surrounding transhumanism are presented in light of their views. In doing so, the fundamental concepts addressed by the transhumanist movement, including “enhancement, correction, evolution, death, immortality, life preservation, improving the gene pool, euthanasia, eugenics, etc.,” and the ideas related to these concepts are explained. On the other hand, the possible relationships between transhumanism and the history of philosophy are discussed, with particular emphasis on its connection to Nietzsche and his concepts, which transhumanist thinkers often focus on. The search for concepts that can serve as the foundation of transhumanist thought is explored, and the contradictions arising from these ideas are highlighted. The potential problems in future, raised by transhumanism, as well as the implications for human existence and change, are then examined. The criticisms of thinkers such as Rebecca Taylor, Francis Fukuyama, and Ted Peters regarding transhumanism, based on potential individual and societal changes, are also addressed. Throughout the text, the common ideas shared by transhumanist thinkers and their differences are discussed, providing a critical evaluation of transhumanism’s approach to humanity through the perspectives of various thinkers [...]