Recreating an Essence?

South Florida Couple Gets First Commercially Cloned Dog

Lancelot, the cloned dog

I first heard about this story on CBC radio this past week. The thing that really struck me about the interview with the owners of the cloned dog, Lancelot, is that they said that even though he looked identical to his predecessor, Sir Lancelot, there was some concern that his behaviour might not be the same. However, what I find to be most interesting is what Lancelot’s owners said about what the ability to clone their dead dog means to them: “It truthfully is amazing to me that this process has come to be and that I am getting, if not my dog, certainly the essence of Lancelot …” Of course, this raises a very simple question: is the essence of an animal (or any living being) manifest in it’s appearance, or in it’s behaviour? For these people, obviously, the fact that their new dog is identical in appearance to their old dog is enough, even if the new Lancelot isn’t able to learn any of Sir Lancelot’s old tricks.