...The argument on whether abortion is morally permissible has been considered for years. Most philosophers incline to accept moral principle that it is always prima facie seriously wrong to end the life of a person in normal circumstances. The personhood of an embryo and foetus has somehow invoked another controversial issue on whether they are kind of beings, or persons, that it is seriously wrong, for any sake, to end their life. Both the anti-abortionist side and pro-choicers side can only give equally vague boundary on claiming that foetus is a person, or not so. However, as we will find out later in this essay, the problem of whether a foetus is a person, or whether a foetus has serious right to life, does not significantly affect the consideration of abortion under Thomson’s account. The argument of the personhood of foetus will just stay at a standoff if there is no clear definition or lists for what characteristics make a thing a person. When we draw line to represent the development of a human being from the state of conception to the point that a baby is born, it will be arbitrary to choose a point which the thing inside a mother is a person after that point and not a person before that point. Moreover, the opposite of abortion may suggest that a foetus, even at the moment of conception, is a person because of their potential future, meanwhile, the supporters of abortion may insist that a foetus has not yet become a person because it lacks of some characteristics that...
Words: 2665 - Pages: 11
...Abortion is the ending of pregnancy before the birth and the Roman Catholic Church would say that this is morally wrong. An Abortion results in the death of an embryo or fetus. Abortion, the Church says destroys the lives of helpless, innocent children. By aborting these unborn infants, humans are hurting themselves; they are not allowing themselves to meet these new identities and unique personalities. The Church teaches the human life begins at the moment of conception. Does a mother have the right to take the life of her unborn child? Some may say that it is God’s will for that fetus to be born, and that the child is supposed to be born. I will be using different views from an ethical standpoint to try to understand if abortion is morally good or bad. From a non-biblical standpoint, it is based on whether a woman finds it ethically right to terminate a pregnancy and what effect it would ultimately have on her happiness. Therefore, abortion is not philosophically incorrect. Abortion is defined as: “The deliberate termination of a human pregnancy." However, if only the debate over the abortion issue was as simple as the definition provided. Much like every aspect of human life, a statement is not right or wrong, but can be left opens for interpretation. There is no black and white in life, only gray areas. Some issues provide us more gray areas than others. Abortion is a good example of that. If a woman does not believe in a higher power, what justifies her right to...
Words: 386 - Pages: 2
...we have been focused either on normative ethics, which studies what features make something good/bad, an act right/wrong or a trait virtuous or vicious - or metaethics, which studies philosophical questions about the meaning of ethical words, or the nature of ethical facts 2. Applied ethics is a distinct category of ethical philosophy A. What is applied ethics? 3. Deals with difficult moral questions and controversial moral issues that people actually face in their lives Examples: the moral issues regarding… abortion euthanasia giving to the poor sex before marriage the death penalty gay/lesbian marriage (or other rights) war tactics censorship so-called “white lies” etc. A. What is applied ethics? 4. Given the time we have left in the semester, we’re going to focus on only two example issues: • Whether or not we are morally obligated to help the less fortunate (especially those in other nations) • Whether or not abortion is morally wrong 5. Why we haven’t spent more time on this: • Often results in gridlocked or endless discussions • Having some prior knowledge of some normative theories helps give a framework for discussion • Brings in issues that are not philosophical E.g., a discussion about whether or not the death penalty is morally OK may require sociological information about its effectiveness, etc. B. Suggestions for having good discussions 1. Abortion is a very emotional and charged issue - Students are bound to have strong, conflicting opinions. - Many students...
Words: 2993 - Pages: 12
...By definition, abortion refers to the ending of a pregnancy by removal of fetus from the uterus of the mother before the embryo can survive its own. As an added note, abortion can be categorized into two types. One is natural abortion otherwise known as a miscarriage. In this case, the fetus is rejected by the mother’s body and does not survive to term. In some circles, this considered an act of God and therefore moral. The other is induced abortion. Induced abortion is an act done purposefully for either health reasons or other personal reasons. The last definition is where society has been divided and has caused a monumental debate as the case for and against abortion when done purposefully has ignited society’s deepest outlooks. Many philosophers...
Words: 997 - Pages: 4
...The idea of abortion is morally looked down upon. Killing a life that has not yet had the chance to live is a huge issue. Some people look at abortion as morally wrong, and others see no problem with having an abortion. This causes havoc among theologians and devote Christians around the world. Most people do not see abortion as a moral issue anymore because times are changing, and as we progress in the world, society is more welcoming to more ideas than others. One of these ideas happens to be abortion. People no longer look at some of the most controversial issues of the world and deem them as morally wrong anymore. Abortion, however, does not have to be the case. It is unlawful to kill an unborn child when there are plenty of other options...
Words: 2570 - Pages: 11
...Abortions: Morally Acceptable or Not? The issue of abortion is one of the most sensitive and controversial issues faced by modern societies. This issue leads to topics of whether abortion is right or wrong, if it is the actual killing of a person, and what actually defines the moral status of a fetus. In this paper, I will be arguing against Bonnie Steinbock, who believes that abortions are morally acceptable. So I will be supporting the view that abortions are not morally acceptable. In Bonnie Steinbock’s essay, “Why Abortions Are Not Wrong,” she argues that abortions are morally acceptable because fetuses are non-sentient beings and therefore lack interests as well as moral status. Her first premise suggests that it is wrong to kill an organism with moral status, so she believes that a fetus is not morally equivalent to a newborn baby because a first trimester fetus cannot think, feel, or perceive anything like a newborn baby is able to. Steinbock states that a fetus “is certainly alive and human but it feels and is aware of nothing.” She also believes in the interest view which limits the moral status to beings who have interests and restricts the possession of interests to conscious and sentient beings. Which leads to her next premise that being sentient and having interests is essential for having moral status. Steinbock states that, “sentience is the ability to experience pain and pleasure.” The difference between sentient and non-sentient beings, is that since non-sentient...
Words: 1129 - Pages: 5
...ABORTION Abortion remains a divisive and contentious issue which conjures visceral emotions within our contemporary political landscape. The dominant political approach to abortion witnesses Queensland Government engaging in the rights-based realm asserting that foetal life is to be afforded liberal rights at the expense of a woman via the formulation of anti-abortion laws . However, the politics of abortion is patent in ways far beyond centralised government with the discursive framing of abortion often being left to non-governmental actors given the sensitivity and unwillingness of politicians to copiously address abortion. This has resulted in the emergence of a rigid debate between foetal rights and women's rights making liberal rights...
Words: 1098 - Pages: 5
...Actions must coincide with beliefs South Dakota has very lofty goals for their sweeping ban on abortion. The only allowance they grant for obtaining an abortion is “to prevent the death of a pregnant mother” (South Dakota Legislature - handout). The main, and probably most controversial, premise of the South Dakota argument is that the other rights of the pregnant woman are “not sufficient to morally outweigh the prenatal human being’s right to life.” I am in agreement with this ban on abortion mainly because of this premise. One may argue that the pregnant woman indeed has other rights that are more important than that of the prenatal human being and because of this has the right to abort. However, if this was the case then the woman should have been acting in accordance to how important those other rights are to her. If there is something that one values dearly, then their actions should coincide with that belief. Their actions should reflect the importance of the thing that they value. In other words, if obtaining a college degree or establishing a career is most important to a person, then their actions should reflect how important this belief is by not knowingly performing acts or making decisions that are counterproductive to obtaining their goals. The right to life is a universal, important belief that many people hold. Thus, typically, when a person decides to have intercourse with another person, one ensures that this other person does not have sexual transmitted...
Words: 1121 - Pages: 5
...“Abortion is impermissible, because it deprives a being of a future like ours. Accordingly, it is morally similar to killing a healthy adult.” Critically discuss this argument, drawing upon at least one of the authors we have looked at in the readings. Abortion in general can be defined as terminating a pregnancy before birth and this still remains a controversial topic in the world today of whether it is immoral or moral to do so. Besides certain exceptions, the view of abortion as a seriously immoral action has minimal support or evidence in present-day philosophical literature (Marquis, 1989). However, views exist when it comes to illuminating the permissibility of abortion, particularly when future prospects of the foetus are taken into account. This is what the future like ours argument also points out that killing an adult human being is wrong because it deprives the adult of a future and the foetus has a future as well, killing foetuses is wrong in the same way that killing adult human beings is wrong (Kuflik, 2008:417). The future like ours argument is parallel to controversial religious claims and does not appeal to perplexing or difficult philosophical theories (Kuflik, 2008:418). In this essay an attempt will be made to critically discuss abortion being impermissible as it is similar to killing a healthy adult. People against abortion normally depend on the idea that the foetus is a human being or a person from the moment of conception, this notion is argued for...
Words: 1097 - Pages: 5
...or later. This leads us to another subject, abortion, which is also very controversial matter. In today’s word, abortion is taking place everywhere. Many of us claim that abortion is murder. Majority agrees with a fact that life start when an egg and sperm meets and fertilization starts. Since fetus have their own genetic code, it is a new life. With that said fetus is another being and have its own rights. In Sharon Stedman case it is morally and ethical wrong for her to do abortion, since she is already four-and-a-half months pregnant. One of the obvious reason that goes against abortion is that, it is ethically and morally wrong. It is morally wrong for Sharon Stedman to abort the baby for just for materialistic reasons. According to professor Dorcas in our class lecture that “Abortion is the act which a women perform in voluntarily terminating her pregnancy” (Chung). That explain that it is a deliberate act which ethically and morally wrong and against the fetus rights. When we talk about right and wrong actions, it take us to Kant’s argument. As stated by Kant, “all behaviors and actions are done by people simply because they are the right things to do. Second, people do things based on whether it is moral rather than on any purposes (Pratt). Kant would argue against the abortion because it is morally wrong to kill someone and take someone’s life. With that in mind we can say that it is wrong for Mrs. Stedman’s to do abortion under any circumstances. In addition Kant also...
Words: 739 - Pages: 3
...Are Individual Rights More Important Than Human Life? By Talha Sajjad English 161: Academic II Dr. William Ford University of Illinois at Chicago May 3rd, 2010 There are protests and demonstrations held every day, yet somehow abortion is still legal in the United States. In the decision of the Supreme Court case Roe v. Wade, it was ruled that women have the right, given to them by the Constitution, to have an abortion in the early stages of pregnancy (Infoplease). Hundreds of protesters gather outside clinics that offer abortions and try to present their position on the issue, but it seems as though their cries and complains are never heard. The main question that we must decide on is this: is it just to take away human life before it even has the chance to be lived? Several countries around the world have outlawed the practice of abortion. When deciding the abortion issue, its women’s rights as citizens of the United States versus the religious beliefs of a majority of citizens. What is more important, the sanctity of life or allowing murder on the basis of one’s right to choose? Given the abortion procedure allows women sexual and reproductive freedom, it has unconsciously led to a trend where abortion is being used as a method of contraception. In the United States, 49% of the pregnancies are unintended and American women used abortion as a tool to terminate almost half of these pregnancies (Infoplease). Abortion was not meant to be used in accidental...
Words: 3303 - Pages: 14
...Ethics of Abortion Destiny Vazquez SOC 120 Instructor Slack Monday, April 16, 2012 Abortion, one of the most ethical issues debated today. It has been a widely controversial debate for many years dated back to even before it was made legal in the United States. Like most ethical issues, there are two sides as to what is the right thing to do. Some people think that abortion is completely and utterly wrong. Some people think that abortion is right when and only when the mother’s life is at risk. And others think that there is a range of different circumstances that make abortion morally acceptable. In this paper I will present the issue of abortion, explain the three classical theories of utilitarianism, deontology and virtue ethics on how to solve the issue and contrast this response with the perspective brought to the issue of abortion by ethical egoism. I will also present you with my personal opinion as to why I believe abortion should be in fact morally accepted by society. The issues that arise when debating about whether abortion is ethically wrong or right are many. There are two sides to this debate and they call themselves, “pro-life” or “pro-choice”. Pro-lifers say that it is morally wrong to end pregnancy because you are in fact killing an innocent human being, and the pro-choicer believes that the choice should be made by and for the impregnated woman and that under certain circumstances, abortion is in fact acceptable. Many questions are being asked to...
Words: 1945 - Pages: 8
...Abortion Fact #1: Every abortion kills an innocent human being. Every new life begins at conception. This is an irrefutable fact of biology. It is true for animals and true for humans. When considered alongside the law of biogenesis – that every species reproduces after its own kind – we can draw only one conclusion in regard to abortion: every single abortion ends the life of an innocent human being. Fact #2: Every human being is a person. Personhood is properly defined by membership in the human species, not by stage of development within that species. A living being's designation to a species is determined not by the stage of development but by the sum total of its biological characteristics. Fact #3: Beginning at conception, every pregnancy involves two or more bodies. No matter how you spin it, women don't have four arms and four legs when they're pregnant. Those extra appendages belong to the tiny human being(s) living inside of them. At no point in pregnancy is the developing embryo or fetus simply a part of the mother's body. Fact #4: It is just, reasonable, and necessary for society to outlaw certain choices. Any civilized society restricts the individual's freedom to choose whenever that choice would harm an innocent person. Therefore, it is impossible to justify abortion by simply arguing that women should be "free to choose." Fact #5: The right to not be killed supersedes the right to not be pregnant....
Words: 1572 - Pages: 7
...discuss the effects of abortion on the women who have this procedure. For many cultures abortion is a horrible act. It is considered murder of an unborn human being. In today`s society many people still consider abortion to be an unethical practice and dangerous procedure. It is a typical conflict theory argument of social problems in today’s society. It is a conflict in society because it comes down to peoples ethical and religious stand point that is what makes up the conflict. Ethical is either it right because the fetus is in the women’s body and its her choice to choose if she wants to be a mom or not. The other side of the ethics argument czn stem from religious as well it is a life and murdering an unborn baby is wrong. There are two groups of people who fight to sway the law makers to their side the pro abortionist group and the antiabortion group (Henslin, J. M. 2011). These are commonly known as the prolife and prochoice groups. Many people though when you use these terms don’t take the group seriously they considered these people radicals. There are protesters who believe they are standing up for the unborn by murdering abortion doctors and burning down abortion clinics. The vigil-anti`s think this is justifiable due to the fact that abortion doctors are taking innocent lives and without the clinic there would be no place to have an abortion. The pro-choice group believes that abortion is ethical and...
Words: 4926 - Pages: 20
...Cheyenne Bradt Paper #1 Chapter One Ethics 301 Dr. Waibel 1/22/13 Abortion is an ethical issue that many people are debating about. Chapter one in the book Social Issues: Morality and Social Policy discusses the issue of abortion. This chapter starts out discussing the reasons a woman may get an abortion. The first reason is if the fetus was to come to term the mother, for various reasons, could die. The second reason is the woman’s physical and/or mental health could be affected if the pregnancy continued. Third reason, there is a chance that the child would be severely impaired. The fourth reason, the pregnancy was a result of a rape or incest. Fifth reason, the woman is unmarried therefore being pregnant could cause a social stigma. The sixth reason is having a baby would cause a great financial burden. The last reason for having an abortion, which happens to be the most common reason is having a child would interfere with the happiness of the woman. The chapter then discusses the biological development of the fetus. Typically a human pregnancy lasts nine months. During that period of time the fetus goes through a continual process of development. The first is conception. Conception takes place when a male sperm cell combines with a female egg resulting in a single cell called a zygote, it can also be referred to as an embryo. The zygote then moves through the fallopian tube and implantation on the uterine wall occurs. This process usually occurs about eight to ten...
Words: 783 - Pages: 4
