ABSTRACT
The knowledge that is delivered by prediction is a knowledge marked by death. Through prenatal prediction, time amalgamates. The foetus, the child to come, is the bearer of the past of others. It is within this “time that is on hold” that the issue of a decision, of making a choice in the face of a prenatal prediction, presents itself. There is at any rate no linear sequence between the revelation of the knowledge contained in the prediction, and the decision taken. The knowledge given by prediction leads to a non-knowledge about what individuals will do with that knowledge, be it the progenitors or the child. Based on the new and particular form of destiny that genetics brings into play, contemporary genetic medicine introduces us to a new era in tragedy. The tragic dimension is also present in the probability aspect of prediction. However, there is not only genetic prediction, there is also social prediction.
