The Abortion Debate
There are few issues that can cause as many heated and sometimes, irrational, debates than that of abortion. The issue strikes at the very heart of an individual's religious and philosophical beliefs. Does a woman have the right to terminate a pregnancy? Is it moral to do so in any circumstance? Is a fetus a living human being? The debate has raged for nearly thirty years and there does not seem to be any end to the controversy that often results in violence. Irrational individuals who have committed murder want to make their beliefs heard and followed.
In response to the question, some people have resulted to using qualifiers: "no, abortion is not moral except if the pregnancy is the result of rape or incest" is one response heard, in fact, some state laws contain this condition. A very large and strong contingent of people say a very loud and aggressive "no, abortion is not moral, not under any circumstance" and at least as many say a very loud aggressive "yes, abortion is moral; it is the woman's choice regarding her own body." The issue of abortion is filled with emotion.
Despite the eloquent arguments and the seemingly reasonable reasons supporting abortion, abortion is not moral. It is taking the life of a living being and that can never be considered a moral act. There is more and more support for this opinion. As the Roe v Wade decision reached its 25th anniversary, in fact, there was a growing sentiment in this country that abortion is murder. Perhaps this swell of support against abortion is due to the realization that legal abortion has prohibited 35 million humans from being born (First Things, 1998).
In her article, A Defense of Abortion, Judith Jarvis Thomson offered a number of re...
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...s not capable of defending itself, others must help; it is like fighting for the underdog. The fetus is the underdog that must be protected against all forms of damage and ultimately death.
Bibliography:
Cornell, Professor Drucilla. "Abortion." Boston Review Forum, (1996): at http://www-polisci.mit.edu/BostonReview/BR20.4/Cornell.html
Dworkin, Ronald. Life's Dominion (New York: Vintage Books 1994).
Fung, Archon. "Making Rights Real: Roe's Impact on Abortion Access." Politics and Society, (1993): v21, n4.
Pope John Paul II. The Gospel of Life [Evangelium Vitae]. (New York: Random House 1995).
Thomson, Judith Jarvis. "A Defense of Abortion." In Social and Personal Ethics, ed. by William H. Shaw. (Wadsworth Publishing Company 1996).
Thomson, Judith Jarvis. "Abortion." Boston Review, (1997): at http://www-polisci.mit.edu/BostonReview/BR20.3/thomson.html
Thomson, Judith Jarvis. A defense of abortion. Philosophy and Public Affairs, 1.1 (Fall 1971): 47-66.
Abortion, which is defined as a deliberate termination of a human pregnancy, is one of the most controversial issues in society. Many people believe that abortion is unethical and morally wrong, while others believe that it is a woman’s right to decide what to do with her body. According to www.census.gov, “the number of abortions performed annually in the U.S. has leveled off at 1.2 million a year” (1). This statistic supports how many women are choosing abortion. Although abortion is legal in the United States, many people continue to voice their opinions on how it is a human rights violation and should be illegal everywhere. The practice of abortion should be banned in society because it terminates the life of an innocent unborn child, causes long-term emotional effects, as well as major health risks for women who opt for abortion.
Warren, Mary Anne , and Mappes and D. DeGrazia. "On the Moral and Legal Status of Abortion." Biomedical Ethics 4th (1996): 434-440. Print.
Warren, M. A. (1973) 'On the Moral and Legal Status of Abortion', Monist, vol. 57, no. 1.
This issue of abortion also belongs to larger issues such as religious and ethical. People with the religious background have a set of values based on the Bible and believe that pro-life should be the only stand people take into consideration in order to protect human life and keep the baby alive. The other class is ethical. From this stand people can choose whether or not they believe abortion is the right thing to do and can make their own choice based on their values, regardless of what religion they are. Because abortion is such a widespread issue, it is crucial that we come up with an agreement on what is best and what steps are necessary in getting to that agreement.
...vacy, bodily integrity, and self-determination until the child is brought forth from the woman 's body” (ACLU). Until a fetus is brought forth from a woman’s body it is only a potential person, and thus has no rights whatsoever.
Baird, Robert M., and Stuart E. Rosenbaum. The Ethics of Abortion: Pro-life vs. Pro-choice. Buffalo, NY: Prometheus, 1989. Print.
Abortion has been one of the biggest controversies of all time. According to the Oxford dictionary, the term abortion can be defined as, the deliberate termination of human pregnancy, most often performed during the first 28 weeks of pregnancy. There are two different types of abortion; a spontaneous abortion, which is also known as a miscarriage, and an induced abortion, where the embryo or fetus is purposely removed from the women’s body. The topic of induced abortion has been widely debated for hundreds of years. The issue of abortion was argued way back in the time of the ancient Hebrews. Today many people consider abortion to be murder, but shouldn’t the soon-to-be mother 's right to make such a personal and heartbreaking choice be
Abortion is one of America’s most controversial subjects. The participants in this debate have fixed beliefs on the matter at hand. On one side of the debate are people who believe in pro- choice. They argue that choice of a woman is more important than an unborn fetus. They point out that an unborn child is not on the same level of importance as the mother. Also, the pro-life group declares that choice is the sole purpose behind their argument. They believe that if a woman cannot chose to abolish a pregnancy, then she looses one of her basic human rights. The other side of the debate is the pro-life group. Their main concern is that the fetus is a person; therefore, having the same human rights as the mother. As a result, when states pass laws that enable abortions, these states are legalizing murder. When considering an individual’s ethics and values, killing is morally wrong. Therefore, the termination of unborn children is wrong, as well. Abortion, the unethical expulsion of an embryo or fetus, in order to purposely end a pregnancy, should be forbidden because human life begins at conception, economics is not a justification for abortion, and an unwanted child does not justify abortion.
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 is a voluminous topic today all around the world. Differing viewpoints on abortion are recognized in politics, religion, and throughout the general population. There is a small amount of people who are nonchalant on the subject. Women have abortions for many different reasons and according to certain groups these reasons are either justified or not. Everyone tends to have their own articulated opinion, and many vocalize tenaciously what they believe. Pro-life individuals along with religion are sanguine that abortion is ethically and morally erroneous. Whereas those who are pro-choice say that abortion is inconsequential and the mother’s choice is more important than the fetus. Reasons to not get an abortion include risks involved in receiving an abortion. In some cases death can occur. However, there are other alternatives to abortion. For example, raising the child and adoption.
It is almost unanimously agreed upon that the right to life is the most important and sacred right possessed by human beings. With this being said, it comes as no surprise that there are few issues that are more contentious than abortion. Some consider the process of abortion as immoral and consisting of the deprivation of one’s right to life. Others, on the opposite end of the spectrum, see abortion as a liberty and a simple exercise of the right to the freedom of choice.
Kaczor, C. R. (2011). The ethics of abortion: Women's rights, human life, and the question of justice. New York: Routledge.
Abortions have always been a very controversial topic. Over the years we continue to fight for or against it. One can say that is one of the most talked and argued topic in the United States. An abortion is when a woman terminates her pregnancy before the fetus is viable using various of methods. Some argue that abortions should be illegal and considered murder, while others, from a religious point of view, say that no one has the right to take away the life of a person, in this case the fetus. However, others insist, that abortions are a basic women’s right.