Review of Literature on Abortion in the Family

Review of Literature on Abortion in the Family

Abortion is a very controversial subject that has been continuously argued over for the past few years and probably for many more years to come. Women who are making the decision are effected emotionally, mentally, and physically since their bodies are going through many changes which it is not accustomed to. The main controversy is, who's right is it to abort? Many will argue and say it is the woman's right to chose what she does with her own body, but what about the father's right? The man's involvement in the abortion decision is not about the woman's choice, it is about his own responsibility to her and the child (Arthur 1999). There are two sides to this abortion topic: the pro-life, which is those who are against abortion altogether, and the pro-choice, or those who believe it is the woman's right to choose if she wants to have an abortion. These two groups offer different solutions to the problem. The pro-life solution is to have the child and basically live with him/her. They believe abortion is not an answer. The pro-choice solution is abortion because of reasons they feel are appropriate.

When pregnancy is unwanted women perceive the choice of abortion as the least of three evils: abortion, adoption, or keeping the child (Smith, 2000). Pregnancy changes a woman's life, regardless of whether or not it ends in abortion. The woman making the abortion decision looks at a variety of relationships to help her make the decision. Often, she will discuss her options with a physician or counselor. If she does decide to get an abortion, there are many factors she will have to face. According to an article in Business 2.0, written by David Shribman (2000), women who have had abortions are at greater risk of suffering emotional and psychological problems which may interfere with their ability to concentrate, make decisions, and interact with others. As a result, it reduces the woman's level of job skills and employment opportunities. Post-abortion women are more likely to engage in drug and alcohol abuse, often as a result of the guilt and negative feelings held inside of them after the abortion. This may prevent them from entering other meaningful relationships. They are likely to become pregnant again and undergo additional abortions and are more likely to never marry, more likely divorce, and m...

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... Legal abortion may help parents limit their families to the number of children they want and can afford, both financially and emotionally. Many unwanted babies are abused, neglected, or even killed by uncaring or immature parents (Smith 2000). There is a lack of babies up for adoption because abortion is legal. Perhaps if abortion was illegal, women could go ahead with the pregnancy and then give the baby up for adoption.

Abortion is a significant issue in society that has a lot of conflicts. There is still no conclusion because one can see this problem from many different perspectives. If a person supports a pro-life or pro-choice group, they cannot judge objectively if the other group has a different way of thinking. Society cannot judge pro-life activists as a group who have no respect for a woman's right. On the other hand, one cannot say that pro-choice is a better group because they are more aware of human needs. Society will never understand the feelings of a woman who has had an abortion unless they are in her place. To solve this problem, society needs to spend some time to think carefully and to weigh both sides of the issue to make the best decision possible.