Reader's Glossary

Agency: The ability to form a goal, choose, and act. People with limited agency still have full human worth.

Autonomy: Having a real say in your own life. It needs clear information, real options, and freedom from unfair pressure.

Enhancement: A change that adds to an ability beyond a chosen starting point. People may disagree about which starting point to use.

Human dignity: The worth every person has, regardless of ability, health, or usefulness.

Humanism: Views that stress human well-being, learning, and dignity. Some are religious; others do not base their beliefs on God.

Identity: What makes someone the same person over time. Different views focus on the body, mind, soul, or relationships.

Informed consent: Agreement based on clear facts and a real choice. A signature alone does not prove it.

Moral responsibility: The duty to answer for choices and conduct. It should match a person's knowledge, role, and control.

Providence: God's care and rule over creation. Christian traditions explain its link to human freedom in different ways.

Stewardship: Caring for what has been placed in our hands. It treats abilities, resources, and relationships as gifts to care for, not things we own without limits.

Therapy: Care meant to treat a condition or help a person function. Its boundary with enhancement can be hard to draw.

Transhumanism: Views that favor using technology to greatly expand human abilities. Supporters disagree about methods, social rules, and faith.