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Ethics against abortion
The argument between pro life or pro choice
Controversy over the moral issues with abortion
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Abortion Abortion is a very touchy topic. There are so many different views on the issue. We will cover the views of two major ethical authors, R.M. Hare and Judith Jarvis Thomson. Also you will get to my opinions and views on the issue as well. In R.M. Hare’s essay he raises the question that all philosophers long the answer to, “ Is the fetus a person?”, Hare states that in most cases that question leads to a dead end. What we do know however, is that the potentiality of the fetus becoming a human adult is great. Many aspects of the fetus can simply not however be know, from an example Hare gave on page 585 of our text book “The Moral life, 2e” , we do not know if the fetus, at a late stage has conscience experiencing, which includes pain and suffering. We can however, be fairly certain that the fetus cannot feel pain in the early stages of the pregnancy. Hare argues that when someone proposed the question “Is the fetus a person?”, the definition of a person is always unclear. Does one mean, “Is the potential of the fetus becoming a person there?” or does one mean there is already a person in the womb. Hare states that there is a clear sense of the fetus not being a person. He continues to say, that the fetus is way too different from what you and I instantly recognize as a person. Judith Jarvis Thomson does not exactly disagree with Hare, but she also does not completely agree with him either. Thomson does however state that a fetus can acquire human characteristics by the tenth week of the pregnancy. She says the fetus will already have a face, arms,legs,fingers, and toes. The fetus also has internal organs, and brain activity is found, although the brain is not near fully developed. Another point Hare makes in his essay i... ... middle of paper ... ...on what I have just state by saying that just because the fetus looks like a human doesn't mean it has human characteristics, to which I would reply, with recent technology and 3D sonograms doctors can vividly see that baby do simple tasks like sucking their thumb, yawning, and stretching. Arent these simple human characteristic and tasks that we do everyday? Just because the baby hasn't physically been born yet, doesn't mean it is any less of a human being. I hope this paper has given you a better understanding of the different viewpoints there are on abortion. Rather it be R.M. Hare’s viewpoint that a fetus is not a person, or Judith Thomas’s viewpoint that abortion is permissible in certain circumstance. Or maybe you agree with me that the fetus is a baby and by having an abortion you are ultimately killing a human being. Either way it is your decision to make.
There are many factors that are taken into consideration when determining if abortion is morally permissible, or wrong including; sentience of the fetus, the fetuses right to life, the difference between adult human beings and fetuses, the autonomy of the pregnant woman, and the legality of abortion. Don Marquis argues that abortion is always morally wrong, excluding cases in which the woman is threatened by pregnancy, or abortion after rape, because fetuses have a valuable future. Mary Anne Warren contends that late term abortions are morally permissible because birth is the most significant event for a fetus, and a woman’s autonomy should never be suspended.
Thomson starts off her paper by explaining the general premises that a fetus is a person at conception and all persons have the right to life. One of the main premises that Thomson focuses on is the idea that a fetus’ right to life is greater than the mother’s use of her body. Although she believes these premises are arguable, she allows the premises to further her explanation of why abortion could be morally permissible. People would find it more understanding and more willing to help someone who is a relative.
Works Cited Warren, Mary Anne. On the Moral and Legal Status of Abortion. Trans. Array Exploring Ethics: An Introductory Anthology. . 2 nd.
Mary Anne Warren’s “On the Moral and Legal Status of Abortion” describes her justification that abortion is not a fundamentally wrong action for a mother to undertake. By forming a distinction between being genetically human and being a fully developed “person” and member of the “moral community” that encompasses humanity, Warren argues that it must be proven that fetuses are human beings in the morally relevant sense in order for their termination to be considered morally wrong. Warren’s rationale of defining moral personhood as showcasing a combination of five qualities such as “consciousness, reasoning, self-motivated activity, capacity of communication, and self-awareness” forms the basis of her argument that a fetus displays none of these elements that would justify its classification as a person and member of the morally relevant community (Timmons 386).
In A Defense of Abortion (Cahn and Markie), Judith Thomson presents an argument that abortion can be morally permissible even if the fetus is considered to be a person. Her primary reason for presenting an argument of this nature is that the abortion argument at the time had effectively come to a standstill. The typical anti-abortion argument was based on the idea that a fetus is a person and since killing a person is wrong, abortion is wrong. The pro-abortion adopts the opposite view: namely, that a fetus is not a person and is thus not entitled to the rights of people and so killing it couldn’t possibly be wrong.
But, there are many differences between an actual person and a fetus. First of all, a fetus is completely dependent on the mother. Fetus’s need their mothers in order to be fed correctly, to live in a stable environment, and to grow and expand among many other things. Because the fetus cannot survive on its own, then it does not qualify as a human being. In addition, a fetus that is still inside the womb is only a potential person. The fetus resides inside of the mother, and thus is part of the mother herself until it is born. Another difference between a fetus and a person is that a person can feel pain. Anti abortionist commonly argue that abortion is wrong because it would cause pain to the fetus. But, according to Mark Rosen, an obstetrical anesthesiologist at the University of California at San Francisco, “the wiring at the point where you feel pain, such as the skin, doesn’t reach the emotional part where you feel pain, in the brain.” Furthermore, the thalamus does not form until week 28 of the pregnancy. So, no information, including pain, can reach the cortex in the brain for processing. These facts prove that a fetus would not be affected by the mother’s choice of having an abortion, thus proving Marquis and all other anti-abortionists wrong.
Even though many argue a fetus is not yet a person, Marquis does not think it makes a difference at what stage a person is in life, that fetus will eventually be a person who will eventually live a life and to take that away before it even starts would be unethical.... ... middle of paper ... ... This idea, he argues, does not withstand the argument of suicide because it challenges his theory of having the desire to live.
Warren, Mary Anne , and Mappes and D. DeGrazia. "On the Moral and Legal Status of Abortion." Biomedical Ethics 4th (1996): 434-440. Print.
Hinman, Lawrence. “Abortion: A Guide to the Ethical Issues.” May 13, 2010. University of San
In our society, there are many ethical dilemmas that we are faced with that are virtually impossible to solve. One of the most difficult and controversial issues that we are faced with is abortion. There are many strong arguments both for and against the right to have an abortion which are so complicated that it becomes impossible to resolve. The complexity of this issue lies in the different aspects of the argument. The essence of a person, rights, and who is entitled to these rights, are a few of the many aspects which are very difficult to define. There are also issues of what circumstances would justify abortion. Because the issue of abortion is virtually impossible to solve, all one can hope to do is understand the different aspects of the argument so that if he or she is faced with that issue in their own lives, they would be able to make educated and thoughtful decisions in dealing with it.
From this point of view, any attempt to diminish that control is a cruel infringement upon a woman's rights. If, however, you believe the fetus is a person, then you are obligated to protect it, even to the point of delimiting the actions of the woman carrying it. For you, the suggestion that this issue is a matter of personal choice is like saying that whether or not a parent kills a two-year-old is a matter of personal choice. The goal of these pages is to examine the abortion debate from several perspectives, focusing on the question of when the fetus' life as a person
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.
With the start of human life unclear, relying on our intuition becomes ineffective; thus leaving that obligation up for debate. Should we grant a full set of moral rights to a fetus on their first trimester as we do a fully developed person of moral standing? The answer is yes. In accordance to Emmanuel Kant’s ethical theory, the act of abortion, in direct violation to the first and second formulation to the categorical imperative, is morally wrong. I defend the human value of a fetus from the moment of conception upon the following Kantian grounds: denying or removing another person’s future of a life cannot be (1) universalized nor (2) is it acting in a way that treats others as ends in themselves.
One of the major controversial issues confronting the society today is abortion. I choose abortion as the topic of discussion since it contradicts my values and beliefs. Abortion is the extraction of the human fetus from the mother’s womb with an intention to end the life of that fetus prior to its natural birth. The controversy surrounding abortion is whether it should be legalized or not? In my opinion, abortion is morally and ethically wrong because it leads to violation of human rights. Life is precious and only it’s Creator has the right to take it away. I chose this issue for discussion to bring to light many of the hidden facts and arguments, of which people are unaware and not very sensitive today. Three of the many aspects of abortion can be taken into consideration 1) Motives behind abortion 2) Pro life v/s pro choice. 2) The growth of the “Dead Baby Industry.”
Abortion in the United States is a legal form of murder. Each and every year over a million babies are murdered and it must be stopped now before it will continue to get out of hand each and every day. We have discussed in this essay that a fetus is a living humans and not something that can just be thrown away. An unborn child is still a child and he or she needs an opportunity to grow and live a long successful life just like the rest of us have gotten the privilege to do. Abortion cannot go on any longer. More and more live are lost every day.