There is no simple answer to the social dilemmas facing our society in the present day. One could spend days arguing reasons in support or opposition for issues such as the morality of abortion, the existence of free will, or the feasibility of universal ethics. In Michael S. Gazzaniga 's book, The Ethical Brain, these controversial topics are discussed using a brain-based philosophy of life, commonly known as Neuroethics. Although there are several advantages to solving such predicaments using a scientific approach, it is equally important to consider the personal and social implications of an ethical decision. For this reason, I partially agree with the statement that human beings should use Neuroethics to deal ethically with social issues …show more content…
This topic is crucial when considering the decision to penalize a criminal for a felony. Scientifically speaking, there is a difference between the brains of individuals, causing some people to be more aggressive than others. As Gazzaniga (2005) states in his book, "Whether through neurochemical imbalances or lesions, brain function can become distorted, perhaps explaining certain violent or criminal behavior" (p.89). If all people with such neurochemical imbalances displayed similar types of behavior, the conclusion would be obvious. However, not all people who have lesions or schizophrenia are violent. (Gazzaniga, 2005, p.95) An inconsistency in behavioral outcomes requires an alternate explanation of the concept of free will. Some philosophers criticize neuroscientists, arguing that, according to the article Neuroscience vs. Philosophy, "researchers have not quite grasped the concept that they say they are debunking" (Neuroscience vs. Philosophy: Taking an Aim at free will, 2011). In order to fully understand the concept of free will, it must be understood from synthesizing lessons from human experiences. Aristotle spoke of an internal moral compass that all humans possess; one that guides the concept of what is good (Eshleman, 2014, p.3). It becomes a necessity to compile the scientific perspective of a moral dilemma with the philosophical perspective in order to draw a reasonable …show more content…
This is a topic that is seemingly impossible reach a compromise on. Initially, it would make sense to understand the cognitive processes of a fetus at the various stages of development. There is reasonable evidence that the fetus does not have sustainable mental activity until 23 weeks after conception (Gazzaniga, 2005, p.8). The argument could be made, based on the neural activity of the fetus, that abortion is not morally ethical after the 23rd week following conception. Despite this scientific evidence, there is still a lack of agreement among persons debating this issue. For example, approximately 89 percent of abortions take place before the 12th week after conception (Hinman, 2014, p.11), yet many people view conception as the beginning of life and will therefore not support abortion, even if it happens before the fetus has sustainable mental activity. Understandably, the solution is once again not easily agreed upon. One must consider the social implications of abortion, or lack there of prior to deeming it acceptable or not. For example, women who are victims of rape and incest should have no obligation to carry out a pregnancy, regardless of point in time after conception. "An abortion can avoid disgrace to an unwed mother." (Mahamood, 2015, p.69) The answer to the morality of abortion lies deeper than understanding the
In “Toward a Universal Ethics,” written by Michael Gazzaniga, a question is posed to coax his audience toward a science based ethics. “The question is, Do we have an innate moral sense as a species, and if so, can we recognize and accept it on it’s own terms? It is not a good idea to kill because it is not a good idea to kill, not because God or Allah or Buddha said it was not a good idea to kill.”(Gazzaniga, 420 para. 6). Gazzaniga answers the question for us, but he was wrong to assume that the brain’s systematic response to moral situations means that science should dictate ethics and morality. Instead, ethics and morality should be considered a part of humanity, which is influenced and balanced by many things including science, religion, and individual
In 2000 an article was published in Science by Dr. Richard Davidson at the University of Wisconsin at Madison. It showed a study conducted by Davidson on those who had previously committed violent crimes versus those who are considered for the most part, “normal.” The results showed distinct brain activity in the more violent offenders in the frontal lobe and limbic system. This leads us to conclude that those who are violent could potentiall...
In the US, 89% of abortions are performed during the first trimester of a woman 's pregnancy. Approximately 115,000 abortions are done per day in the US and at least 25 and younger women have a 50% of having an abortion. This paper will reflect on the moral status of abortion, a fetus having value to life, alternative options instead of abortion and rape being an exception. The conservative point feels a fetus should be given full moral status. They should be given full moral status because in the early weeks of development they are developing major organs. A fetus should be given the right to continue to fully develop so that they have the opportunity to contribute to society. If an abortion occurs, it does not give a fetus the opportunity
Thou shalt not kill; one-tenth of what may arguably be the most famous guidelines of morality in the western culture, and also the main driving force for pro-life advocates. The argument supporting their beliefs typically starts with the premises that a fetus is a person, and to destroy or to kill a person is unethical. Therefore abortion, the premeditated destruction of a human being, is murder, and consequently unethical. I deny the fact that the fetus, what I will refer to as an embryo up to 22 weeks old, has the right to live. The opposing argument is invalid because a fetus, although perhaps a part of human species, is not formally a person. This leaves it simply to be a part of the woman?s body, whose fate lies solely in the hands of the pregnant woman alone, no different from a tumor she might have. By proving this, the abortion debate then becomes an issue of women?s rights, something that is most controversial indeed. Furthermore, it is fair to question the credibility of many people against abortion because of obvious contradictions in the logic of their belief systems. The fact that this debate is relevant in modern society is ludicrous since there is a simple and plausible solution to this problem that could potentially end the debate for good, leaving both sides satisfied.
Abortion is "the intentional termination of a pregnancy which may include the loss of life of an unborn entity". During the eighth week of pregnancy, the development of the unborn entity known as the Fetus- an unborn offspring- begins, where brain activity becomes detectable. Note, the fetus is not considered Viable until the twenty-fourth week of pregnancy (S. Morris MarquisHO). According to Professor Steven Morris, a fetus becomes a person when it has sentience, viability, brain activity, self-consciousness, etc. "While many people agree that a day-old embryo does not have rights, most people agree that a fetus has rights on the day before it is born". Analyzing the following case:
...ice. While I value my experience, as I feel should be commonly held by others and the way in which we interact (killing adults is wrong), I don’t see a strong enough basis for that view to be held for a fetus. As Marquis summarized, the killing of a fetus is essentially arbitrarily choosing a human cell. Although fetuses in first trimester aren’t single celled organisms, they serve no cognitive function or purposes to themselves, so there are no features in which it is being deprived of if it is terminated. The potential life of a fetus is the same as saying there is a potential for any such biological thing, it is simply a scenario, which could happen if given the opportunity. But if an adult human possesses the ability to have goals and desires, they then should be allowed to make the discretion for their best interest to whether an abortion is permissible or not.
According to Dr. McCarthy de Mere, a medical doctor and law professor at the University of Tennessee, "The exact moment of the beginning of personhood and of the human body is at the moment of conception." This is suggesting that once a child is conceived, it should be recognized as a human. Furthermore, he explains how at just eighteen days after conception, the fetus’ heart begins to beat and after just eight weeks after conception, all body systems become present on the fetus. I feel strongly that if everyone was aware of these numbers that the numbers alone could convince the public to think twice before aborting a child. In situations where it was the mother’s idea to have sex and she got pregnant, it is cruel to allow her to, in a sense, punish her child for actions that she could have prevented. Everyone knows exactly wha...
Singer first points out that the different opinions on abortion come from the debate on when a human life actually begins. He formulates the common argument against abortion as follows: it is wrong to kill an innocent human being; a human fetus is an innocent human being; therefore, it is wrong to kill a human fetus. It is because killing a human being is undoubtedly wrong and immoral that the opposition instead attempts to deny the second part of the argument “a human fetus is an innocent human being”. By doing so, critics argue that the fetus does not have the status of a human being. This debate results in focusing on whether, or when, the fetus can be considered a human being, and therefore given the same rights against being killed as another human being. Singer however claims that it is difficult to find a moral dividing line between a fetus and a human being because the development of the human egg to a child is gradual. To prove his point, he describes four commonly proposed moral lines (birth, viability, quickening, and consciousness), which he then denies with strong arguments.
Many people who don’t know much about abortion don’t know how truly horrifying and serious it is. There are many small details about the baby that could change a woman’s mind in an instant on whether or not they think abortion is the way to go. Women usually don’t realize how it works or what exactly is happening to the baby. They usually think to themselves that it isn’t really a baby or a human form yet, but they are wrong. The baby has already developed fingers, eyelids, a brain, knees, and many other human features by just only seven weeks into the pregnancy (What your baby). Unborn developing babies are much more “human” tha...
In abortion, the ethical question rests whether the right of the mother or the fetus should take precedence? Abortion is the deliberate termination of a human pregnancy, most often performed during the first 28 weeks of pregnancy and the expulsion of a fetus from the uterus by natural causes before it is able to survive independently. Abortion has become one of the largest social debates world wide being such a moral issue. Ethics in abortion involves constitutional and human right, personal beliefs, the other options, state laws, pro-life, and pro-choice.
Imagine…the birth of a human being into the world. 9 months of endless anticipation leading to someone’s first chance at seeing the world for the first time. While some enjoy the result of a pregnancy, leading to a new human being entering life, some are not so fond, or just can’t be in such a situation. Abortion is the supposed “cure” to this problem and is, for the most part, done safely. However, one of the factors stopping someone from committing an abortion is the consideration of moral status on the child.
Abortion may appear ethical or unethical depending on various viewpoints and circumstances. The fetus is considered a person and bringing it to term may be unethical as the act is considered as murder. In some situations, the mother may require to terminate a pregnancy for her bodily autonomy (Johnston, 2003). In such positions, the resolution to terminate a pregnancy may be argued as the most ethical choice. The mother is also considered to having a reasonable level of ethical responsibility to the fetus, because she did not take enough precaution to ensure avoiding conception (Cline, 2014). The mother’s ethical responsibility to the fetus may not be enough to deprive her choice of abortion; it...
There will never be a universal answer to whether a fetus is a person or not. Going by the traits that make a person, a fetus is not considered a person. It is not living, it cannot make rational thought and it cannot communicate with others. Therefore, the decision to have an abortion is permissible and does not infringe on any persons right. A woman has a right to body and has the choice to have an abortion if she feels necessary. The argument to whether abortion is permissible relies on one’s beliefs to what makes a person. If one believes life starts at conception, then they would perceive abortion as being morally wrong. Those that follow specific traits that make a person, find abortion permissible. The issue is determined not by one view, but many. That is why there will never be any one answer to the morality of abortion.
Abortion is defined as a procedure that is done to remove an embryo or fetus from the uterus of its mother in order to prevent its birth (Roth, 2005). Abortion is categorized as a bioethical issue because it relates to the morals of biomedical advances, policies and research. Abortion is a difficult subject that can involve personal morals and beliefs, legality and religious values. The issue is often viewed from either the side of pro-life, which places emphasis on the fetus and its right to life or pro-choice, which emphasizes the rights of the mother to decide the appropriate action (Roth, 2005). This brings the ethical question of should the government have the right to outlaw abortion into debate. The two viewpoints of pro-life and pro-choice explore the two main moral issues concerning abortion (Roth, 2005).
Joseph Farah wrote an article about abortion in The Human Life Review. In this, she quoted Steven Pinker, a professor of psychology at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology saying, " Babies aren't really people, because they don't have an ability to reflect upon (themselves) as a continuous locus of consciousness, to form and savor plans for the future, to dread death and to express the choice not to die. And there's the rub: Our immature neonates don't posess these traits any more than mice do.