The Transplant Imaginary: Mechanical Hearts, Animal Parts, and Moral Thinking in Highly Experimental Science

236 Pages·2014·2.141 MB·English

by  Lesley A. Sharp

Th e Transplant Imaginary
99778800552200227777996600__PPRRIINNTT..iinndddd ii 1177//0099//1133 11::0033 PPMM
This page intentionally left blank
Th e Transplant Imaginary
Mechanical Hearts, Animal Parts, and Moral
Th inking in Highly Experimental Science
lesley a. sharp
university of california press
Berkeley Los Angeles London
99778800552200227777996600__PPRRIINNTT..iinndddd iiiiii 1177//0099//1133 11::0033 PPMM
University of California Press, one of the most
distinguished university presses in the United
States, enriches lives around the world by
advancing scholarship in the humanities, social
sciences, and natural sciences. Its activities are
supported by the UC Press Foundation and by
philanthropic contributions from individuals and
institutions. For more information, visit www
.ucpress.edu.
University of California Press
Berkeley and Los Angeles, California
University of California Press, Ltd.
London, England
© 2014 by Th e Regents of the University of California
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Sharp, Lesley Alexandra.
Th e transplant imaginary : mechanical hearts,
animal parts, and moral thinking in highly
experimental science / Lesley A. Sharp.
pages cm
Includes bibliographical references and index.
isbn 978-0-520-27796-0 (hardback)
isbn 978-0-520-27798-4 (paper)
1. Transplantation of organs, tissues, etc.—Social
aspects—United States. 2. Ethnology—United
States. 3. Medical anthropology—United States.
I. Title.
RD120.7.S492 2013
174.2ʹ97954—dc23 2013024442
Manufactured in the United States of America
23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
In keeping with a commitment to support
environmentally responsible and sustainable
printing practices, UC Press has printed this book
on Natures Natural, a fi ber that contains 30%
post-consumer waste and meets the minimum
requirements of ansi/niso z39.48-1992 (r 1997)
(Permanence of Paper).
99778800552200227777996600__PPRRIINNTT..iinndddd iivv 1177//0099//1133 11::0033 PPMM
For my father
Rodman Alton Sharp
D.O.D.
1930—2013
A man who found beauty both in nature and in the tinkerer’s art
99778800552200227777996600__PPRRIINNTT..iinndddd vv 1177//0099//1133 11::0033 PPMM
This page intentionally left blank
contents
List of Illustrations ix
Acknowledgments xi
Introduction: Moral Neutrality in Experimental Science 1
1. Th e Reconfi gured Body of the Transplant Imaginary 25
2. Hybrid Bodies and Animal Science: Th e Promises of Interspecies
Proximity 50
3. Artifi cial Life: Perfecting the Mechanical Heart 90
4. Temporality and Social Desire in Anticipatory Science 147
Conclusion: Th e Moral Parameters of Virtuous Science 171
Notes 179
References 199
Index 215
99778800552200227777996600__PPRRIINNTT..iinndddd vviiii 1177//0099//1133 11::0033 PPMM
This page intentionally left blank
illustrations
1. Illustration of human musculature (male fi gure) by Andreas
Vesalius, 1543 41
2. Illustration of the human skeleton by Andreas Vesalius, 1543 41
3. Lab researcher holding a piglet 64
4. A nurse posing as a patient with the fi rst dialyzer or “artifi cial kidney”
designed by Willem Kolff in the Netherlands 96
5. Willem Kolff posing before an array of artifi cial heart devices at the
University of Utah 99
6. A component of an artifi cial heart designed by William H. Sewell, Jr., at
Yale University 102
7. Two generations of implantable ventricular assist devices
(VADs) 105
8. A ventricular assist system prior to surgical implantation 106
9. Illustrations of an implanted artifi cial heart and a natal heart 106
10. Idealized illustration of an implanted artifi cial heart and its
external driver 113
11. Promotional photo of a woman displaying a portable PVAD
system 114
12. Photo of “Ian’s Chest,” by Tim Wainwright, showing a double, external
VAD support system 117
ix
99778800552200227777996600__PPRRIINNTT..iinndddd iixx 1177//0099//1133 11::0033 PPMM