A Secular Defense of Pro-Life The pro-life stance on abortion is often associated with and defended by traditional Christian beliefs , ; however, this paper will argue that it can and should be defended with secular arguments that appeal to reason and our shared human condition. This paper will try and counter the notion that the argument is simply another battlefield where religion and secular thought meet. Rather, it is an important issue that carries with it heavy implications not only for the religious but also for the secular. The major arguments discussed include the emotional and physical toll on the mother, the societal toll of having abortion legalized, and the rights attributed to every human being; first, however, the stance taken in this paper will be further defined and clarified. There are many different beliefs floating around Christian as well as secular circles as to what it means to be “pro-life”. Some claim that this view equates all forms of contraception to abortion while others claim that to be “pro-life” one must only be against abortion. In his book The Pro-Life/Choice Debate, Mark Herring summarizes the Humanae Vitae, a document released by Pope Paul VI in the late 1960s, saying “it warns against using contraceptives and engaging in sexual relations for their own sake…” The stance that will be taken in this paper will be that to be “pro-life” is to be against abortion and not contraception. Equating all forms of contraception to that of abortion is an ill-founded and uneducated claim that does more to hurt the perception and potential power of the pro-life movement than it does to help it. It allows the discussion to veer far off the path, as can be seen in Christina Page’s book How the Pro-Choice Movemen... ... middle of paper ... ...: 397-399. Haugen, David, Susan Musser, and Kacy Lovelace, . Abortion. Farmington Hills, MI: Greenhaven Press, 2010. Herring, Mark Y. The Pro-Life/Choice Debate. Westport, CT: Greenwood, 2003. Lee, Patrick. Abortion and Unborn Human Life. Washington, D.C.: The Catholic University of America, 2010. Nathanson, Dr. Bernard. "Reflections of the Abortion King." In Back to the Drawing Board: The Future of the Pro-Life Movement, by Teresa R Wagner, 76-81. South Bend, IN: St. Augustine's, 2003. Page, Christina. How the Pro-Choice Movement Saved America: Freedom, Politics and the War on Sex. New York: Basic Books, 2006. Piehl, Norah, ed. Abortion. Farmington Hills, MI: Greenhaven, 2007. Williams, Daniel K. "No Happy Medium: The Role of Americans' Ambivalent View of Fetal Rights in Political Conflict over Abortion Legalization." Journal of Policy History 25, no. 1 (2013): 49.
Anger and heated debate have long fueled the controversy over abortion. Whether pro-life or pro-choice, both sides of the argument are convinced of the righteousness of their beliefs. There is, however, some confusion surrounding the term “pro-choice” – it does not directly pertain to the spread and use of abortion, but rather, “pro-choicers” advocate the continued legalization of abortion in order to make the choice available and to ensure that women’s fundamental rights are not subjugated. The stance that abortion should be available has its roots in economic concerns, psychological evidence, moral dilemmas, and the Constitution.
Noonan, John T, Jr. A Private Choice: Abortion in America in the Seventies. Collier Macmillan Publishers, London: 1979.
Works Cited Warren, Mary Anne. On the Moral and Legal Status of Abortion. Trans. Array Exploring Ethics: An Introductory Anthology. . 2 nd.
"Background on Abortion." OnTheIssues.org - Candidates on the Issues. On The Issues.org. Web. 23 July 2011. .
Abortion has been a political, social, and personal topic for many years now. The woman’s right to choose has become a law that is still debated, argued and fought over, even though it has been passed. This paper will examine a specific example where abortion is encouraged, identify the Christian world views beliefs and resolution as well as the consequences of such, and compare them with another option.
Over the course of the last century, abortion in the Western hemisphere has become a largely controversial topic that affects every human being. In the United States, at current rates, one in three women will have had an abortion by the time they reach the age of 45. The questions surrounding the laws are of moral, social, and medical dilemmas that rely upon the most fundamental principles of ethics and philosophy. At the center of the argument is the not so clear cut lines dictating what life is, or is not, and where a fetus finds itself amongst its meaning. In an effort to answer the question, lawmakers are establishing public policies dictating what a woman may or may not do with regard to her reproductive rights.
Hinman, Lawrence. “Abortion: A Guide to the Ethical Issues.” May 13, 2010. University of San
The permissibility of abortion has been a crucial topic for debates for many years. People have yet to agree upon a stance on whether abortion is morally just. This country is divided into two groups, believers in a woman’s choice to have an abortion and those who stand for the fetus’s right to live. More commonly these stances are labeled as pro-choice and pro-life. The traditional argument for each side is based upon whether a fetus has a right to life. Complications occur because the qualifications of what gives something a right to life is not agreed upon. The pro-choice argument asserts that only people, not fetuses, have a right to life. The pro-life argument claims that fetuses are human beings and therefore they have a right to life. Philosopher, Judith Jarvis Thomson, rejects this traditional reasoning because the right of the mother is not brought into consideration. Thomson prepares two theses to explain her reasoning for being pro-choice; “A right to life does not entail the right to use your body to stay alive” and “In the majority of cases it is not morally required that you carry a fetus to term.”
Warren, Mary Anne , and Mappes and D. DeGrazia. "On the Moral and Legal Status of Abortion." Biomedical Ethics 4th (1996): 434-440. Print.
In this evaluation, the sources used include a video, articles, and a pamphlet. Two of these sources-- The Facts Speak Louder than ?The Silent Scream?, a pamphlet published by Planned Parenthood in 1985, and a Chicago Tribune article, "Timeline of abortion laws and events."--are evaluated for their origins, purposes, values, and limitations. However, this historical investigation will not evaluate the effects of conservatism in relation to any issues outside of abortion. Likewise, the years before 1960 and after 1999 will not be factored into the evaluation of the question.
Baird, Robert M., and Stuart E. Rosenbaum. The Ethics of Abortion: Pro-life vs. Pro-choice. Buffalo, NY: Prometheus, 1989. Print.
Carr, Jessica. "Project 6 - Blog Roll." Project 6. Abortion Inhumane, 19 Apr. 2012. Web. 19 Mar. 2013.
One of the most controversial issues in this day and age is the stance people take on abortion. The two main positions that people take are either of pro-choice or pro-life; both sides, although polar opposites, tend to refer to both the issue of morality and logical rationale. The pro-life side of the debate believes that abortion is an utterly immoral practice that should be abolished. On the contrary, abortion should remain a legal procedure because it is a reproductive right; its eradication would not only take away the pregnant person’s autonomy, but would also put more children in financially unstable homes and the adoption system, and would cause an increase in potentially fatal, unsafe abortions.
"Abortion." Opposing Viewpoints Online Collection. Detroit: Gale, 2016. Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 22 June 2016.