“We used to think our fate was in the stars,” quipped James Watson in a Time magazine piece announcing the Human Genome Project (HGP). “Now we know, in large measure, our fate is in our genes.” Scientific insights and technological developments have been propelled by humans’ insatiable curiosity about ourselves and our world, and the HGP—with the goal of mapping the human genome—grew out of that curiosity.

Powerful works of art enrich our understanding of the issues that matter most in our lives—not least in controversial areas of the biosciences. By exploring the dense cultural networks that shape science and technology, they help us see multiple dimensions of policy issues that might be opaque to other forms of analysis. Novels, from Frankenstein to Never Let me Go, have provided a space for reflection, for deepening and expanding our awareness of the impact of genetics on society.