The Debate Over Abortion

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Recommended: Opposing viewpoints of abortion

With the ongoing debate and the advancement of technology in determining the viability of a fetus, abortion, the ending of a pregnancy by removing a fertilized egg, has become increasingly controversial. The morality of abortion has caused many to separate into opposite sides of the spectrum, pro-life and pro-choice. The arguments over abortion has stirred a continuous debate between a pro-choice stance such as that presented by the analogical reasoning of Thomson or Glover’s examination of social context and a pro-life position argued by a moral view of personhood by Noonan. The ethical arguments presented by the conflicting views in the abortion debate has caused others to taken into consideration a sociological account visible in Luker’s examinations of world views in order to discover underlying motivations. The debate has caused many to argue either in support of or against abortion. In the article “A Defense of Abortion,” Judith Jarvis Thomson uses analogical reasoning (such as the case of the sick violinist) to support and convince a right to abortion. Thomson presents the argument that all people are entitled a right to life and that a person’s right to life outweighs any person’s right to decide what happens to their body (1, Thomson, CC p.188).Thomson proposes a hypothetical situation in which the reader is kidnapped and their circulatory system is linked with that of a sick violinist in order to prevent his kidneys from failing. If the person agrees to offer his or her kidneys, they would have to remain plugged for nine months or even more. However if the person refuses, the violinist would die. By using the sick violinist example, Thomson seeks to undermine the argument that an abortion cannot be performed because ... ... middle of paper ... ... pro-choice activists leads to a re-evaluation of the moral arguments such as those given by Thomson, Noonan, and Glover. Luker’s explanations enlarge our capacity of reasoning by appealing to social beliefs and values that help us to understand the social behavior and the motivations behind pro-choice and pro-life activists. Luker’s account ultimately expands the level of ethical reasoning to generate moral insights concerning the ethics of abortion because it helps us to look beyond the surface of the arguments about abortion and search into the roots and causes of the debate. Once these motivations are exposed, one can assess the complex relationship between differing social values and the arguments of conflicting views on abortion. Works Cited “A Defense of Abortion,” Judith Jarvis Thomson “Abortion & the Politics of Motherhood,” Kristen Luker

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