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2 contrasting viewpoints on abortion
Views on abortion
Views on abortion
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In the case study of my 17 year old daughter having told me that she is pregnant and considering having an abortion but wanting to consult with her parents in order to make the right decision. The daughter’s choice to speak with her parents causes this family to look at the situation from all angles of each ethical theory: deontological, teleological and virtue ethics. There are so many options and outcomes this 17 year old girl could or could not face based on the decision that she makes. Looking at the situation from the deontological theory aspect the parents first choice would be to think about how having a baby at 17 yrs old would affect the health of her daughter, the unborn child, the lifestyle of the daughter as well as themselves. …show more content…
“The deontological perspective states that we are to do our duty, whatever that duty may be. When a woman becomes pregnant and has a child it immediately becomes that woman's duty, or parents if both parents are involved, to take care of that child and protect it. By aborting a child a woman is not doing her duty to take care of the child, she is doing the opposite of that. Duties are something that are given responsibilities, not choices we make.”(elizabethburnhamethics.blogspot.com) “Statistics on abortion show that "3/4 say that having a baby would interfere with work, school or other responsibilities; about 3/4 say they cannot afford a child; and 1/2 say they do not want to be a single parent or are having problems with their husband or partner". (Facts About …show more content…
“The second part of deontology that agrees with a pro-life stance on abortion is the idea of treating people as ends in themselves, not means to an end. A classic deontological viewpoint of abortion is one that uses premises to prove a point: "1. The unborn is obviously a human life. 2. It is wrong to take a human life. 3. Abortion is the taking of a human life. 4. Therefore, abortion is wrong." (Vaughn 167) “This list of premises that leads to a conclusion clearly lays out the fact a unborn child is a human life and by taking away a human life you are treating that life as a means to an end for yourself, not as an end in itself. A baby, born or unborn, should be treated as an end in itself, not a means to an end for the convenience of the
Abortions occur for all types of reasons, whether it is because the pregnancy was unplanned, rape-induced, or that it holds a life threatening capacity for the woman herself. Pro-lifers believe once one is conceived, he or she are entitled to a right to live. It does not matter whether or not the pro-lifers are able to prove that a fetus consists of personhood. The life of a potential person should not be able to override the right to one’s body. Judith Thomson presents a though experiment where personhood is granted to a fetus, but how that mere fact still fails to override the woman’s right to her body.
Famous author Dr. Seuss states that a “person is a person no matter how small.”
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.
Many arguments in the abortion debate assume that the morality of abortion depends upon the moral status of the foetus. While I regard the moral status of the foetus as important, it is not the central issue that determines the moral justifiability of abortion. The foetus may be awarded a level of moral status, nevertheless, such status does not result in the prescription of a set moral judgement. As with many morally significant issues, there are competing interests and a variety of possible outcomes that need to be considered when making a moral judgement on abortion. While we need to determine the moral status of the foetus in order to establish the type of entity we are dealing with, it does not, however, exist in a moral vacuum. There are other key issues requiring attention, such as the moral status and interests of the pregnant woman who may desire an abortion, and importantly, the likely consequences of aborting or not aborting a particular foetus. Furthermore, I assert that moral status should be awarded as a matter of degree, based upon the capacities of sentience and self-consciousness an entity possesses. In a bid to reach a coherent conclusion on the issue, the moral status of both foetus and woman, along with the likely results of aborting a particular foetus, must be considered together. Given the multiple facets requiring consideration, I assert that utilitarianism (Mill 1863) offers a coherent framework for weighing and comparing the inputs across a variety of situations, which can determine whether it is ever morally justifiable to have an abortion.
According to American academy and adolescent psychiatry, about 120,000 children are adopted in the United States alone. That is a lot of children that need to find a new home to stay in. Not only do adoptions affect the child after they are adopted, no matter the age; but adoption also affects the parents giving their child up for adoption. There are many types of adoptions. Along with that, there are many reasons for giving the child up for adoption. There are three main perspectives that I will be talking about. One function would be the structural functionalism. How society cooperates. The second would be the conflict perspective. The third would be symbolic interactionism approach. There are many different aspects of adoption, making it
Each day throughout our world, medical professionals suction thousands of babies from their mothers’ wombs through a procedure called abortion. The law protects and provides consent to both the mother and the medical professionals for these procedures. However, the babies seemingly have no right to protection or life themselves because of the argument regarding when a fetus is determined be human and have life. Pro-life author, Sarah Terzo, in a LifeSiteNews.com article, relays the following testimony supporting this from a medical student upon witnessing his first abortion, “Rejected by their mothers and regarded as medical waste by their killers, society allows these babies to die silently, with no recognition or acknowledgment of their humanity” (Terzo).
Abortion may be one of the most controversial topics in America today. Abortion is defined as “the termination of a pregnancy after, accompanied by, resulting in, or closely followed by the death of the embryo or fetus” (cite dictionary). There are really only two sides on people’s opinion on abortion; pro-life which means abortion should be outlawed and pro-choice which means a woman should be able to decide whether she wants to keep her baby. Thousands of protests and riots have begun due to the fact pro-life activists believe abortion should become illegal. Both sides bring valid points to support their decision that could sway any person’s thoughts. The Roe v. Wade law has allowed abortion to be legal in the U.S since 1973 (Chittom & Newton, 2015). The law “gives women total control over first trimester abortions and grants state legislative control over second and third trimester abortions” (Chittom & Newton, 2015). Ever since the law was put in place, millions of people have tried to overturn it and still
For many years, the morality of abortion has been questioned by two perspectives: pro-choice and pro-life. While modern culture explains that abortion is a woman’s free choice if she does not want the unborn baby, the Catholic Church teaches the world that from the moment of conception there is a child with a soul within the womb, and to abort it would be to murder an innocent being.
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.
In this paper, I will provide my opinion supported by multiple theories and principles for the following scenario regarding abortion: Tina is a 19-year-old prostitute and drug abuser who has become unwantedly pregnant. Her mother is her only living relative and can hardly support herself, let alone her own daughter. Tina is not sure whether she should have the baby or not. Personally, I believe that it is morally permissible for Tina to have an abortion due to her unfortunate circumstances. Tina’s situation would be acceptable by the principle of utilitarianism and the moderate viewpoints of Jane English and Judith Jarvis Thomson and unacceptable by the standards of Don Marquis’ Sanctity of Life theory and Immanuel Kant’s duty ethics.
Many people have their own opinions on abortion, that a fetus is a human being with a right to live so abortion is similar to murder. While other groups argue that a woman has certain rights, especially the choice whether to bring another life into the world. The groups that are for it think that abortion gives women the control over their own bodies, which it is their choice when and whether to have children or giving an option to choose to bring or not to bring a child with abnormalities to the world. Some children are born with severe disorders and some parents, being unable to care for their disabled child seek abortion as their one and only option because taking care of a child, especially born with abnormalities is tough work to do as a parent, so they decide whether bring a life into the world. They look ahead on what is best for them, and it is selfish. Or even having in mind that some do not want to become a single parent taking up two roles; a mother and father and they feel like every child should come into the world feeling wanted, loved and cared for. Another reason some women have an abortion is because they do not want to stop work or schooling, and these reasons are consistent across many countries, including America. Other reasons are because of societal pressures, women get little to no social support. But
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.
Some women have accepted the definition that a woman’s prime role as wife and mother is to have control of one’s own body and mind (Reardon 3) .Once they had choices about life roles, they felt that they had the right to choose abortion or not. Any and every woman should have the ability to choose when to have a child in their lives. Many women feel that if they did not have the right to choose an abortion, they would have passed by many opportunities to create a better life for themselves. Some people might not agree with their decisions, but in the ends it is theirs.
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...
For hundreds of years, the United States of America has been a country defined by its promising opportunities and freedom. However, America has proven many times it is not the promised land that many residents of other countries have viewed it to be. Issues like euthanasia, death penalty, freedom of speech, and abortion have given rise to questions of the freedom in America. Abortion has proven to be one of the more tenacious issues that has brought controversy to America. In the Encyclopedia Britannica, abortion is defined as “the expulsion of a fetus from the uterus before it has reached the stage of viability” (Encyclopedia Brittanica). In simple terms, having an abortion is a pregnant woman choosing to not deliver her child. The Guttmacher Institute provides that there are 6.6 million pregnancies in the United States each year, and 51% are unintended (Guttmacher Institute). Further facts from the Guttmacher Institute states that around 358,000 women die per year because of pregnancy and the United States accounts for 60% of those maternal deaths (Guttmacher Institute). There is an estimated over 1 million abortions in the United States per year (Worldometers Real Time World Statistics). Death is one of the reasons of why women decide to have an abortion. More reasons in modern society include fear of parents, unplanned pregnancies, and financial instability. The controversy surrounding abortion is revolved around the two opposing sides which includes pro-life, the argument that abortion should be illegal, and pro-choice, in which people argue women should have the choice of whether or not to have an abortion. People in favor of pro-life support their decision with many arguments. They state that a fetus is considered a h...