Comparing and Analysing The Gift and Frankenstein

Comparing and Analysing The Gift and Frankenstein

We watched a video called “The Gift”. This was a story of a girl

called Annie, aged 16. She was a keen sportswoman and played football

regularly. However, she began to develop balance difficulties. These

difficulties began to escalate, Annie and her mother, Barbara, decide

to go to the Doctors. They find out that Annie has a sever condition

named Friedricks Attaxia in which your muscles waste away. Annie is

told that her condition will deteriorate and she will eventually die.

On hearing this news, Annie’s brother, Ryan, who is fourteen, wants to

be tested for the disease. Ryan finds that he is a carrier of the

disease.

The film now goes forward in time to the year 2012. Annie, Ryan’s

sister, s now dead. Ryan is married and wants to have a child but is

concerned as to whether his wife is a carrier of Friedericks Attaxia,

she is tested and found as a carrier. This means that there is a

chance of their child being born with this disease. Ryan wants to make

sure that their child does not have the disease. Ryan persuades his

wife to let him select a child, using advanced technology, which does

not carry the Friedericks Attaxia gene, on condition that that is the

only thing that he selects. However, as a geneticist, Ryan can read

and understand the gene odes which are presented to him, Ryan decides

to pick a child without the Friedericks Attaxia gene, but also selects

a boy who is good at sport (in memory of Annie).

The story again goes forward in time. Now in the year 2029, Ryan is

now divorced and their son, Mark, is now 16. He is a tennis champion.

However, he discovers he cannot qualify for an award because he was a

‘Designer baby’. Mark now confronts his father, Ryan, who reveals the

truth.

The film ends with a talk show, debating whether designer babies

should be allowed, in which Ryan, his ex – wife, Mark, and a scientist

are interviewed. Ryan and the scientist are clearly for the proposal;

Ryan’s ex wife is against. They debate the pros and cons of Genetic

Engineering. These included increased quality of life for the pros,

but it was argues that designer babies took away the foetus’ right to

live.

We talked about the issues, characters and their viewpoints. Ryan

(when he was young) was very jealous of Annie, and all of the

attention she was receiving. However, he was devastated by Annie’s

condition. Ryan turns out to be a very clever, determined man, who,

although he took it too far, tried to use genetic engineering for