The Morality Of Abortion

1144 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: The moral dilemma with abortion

Abortion

Abortion is an ongoing controversy that affects millions of Americans every year.

Abortion is the removal of an embryo or fetus from the uterus in order to end a

pregnancy(Dicitonary.com). The law provides and protects the mother 's decision

and consent for medical professionals to perform these procedures. There are several

factors that are considered in debating if abortion is morally permissible or wrong. One

factor is understanding the meaning of sentience in order to consider if abortion is moral

or immoral. Sentience is using the concept to distinguish the ability to think and reason

from the ability to feel (sentience) (Dictionary.com).
In the book, Disputed Moral Issues, by

Mark Timmons, Chapter 10 discusses Abortion. A reprint from the Journal of Philosophy,

“Why Abortion Is Immoral,” by Don Marquis is in the text. Don Marquis is straight-forward

and to the point. Marquis’ argument states that abortion is seriously and morally wrong.

He exclaims that abortion involves killing but excludes cases in which the woman has been

raped and ends her pregnancy within 14 days or ends her pregnancy due to her life being

threatened because of pregnancy complications. The purpose of this essay is to explain

the premise, inference, and conclusion of Marquis’ argument and an argument of rejection

providing premise, inference and conclusion.

Don Marquis’s approach to the morality of abortion is setting out an argument to prove

that abortion is seriously wrong. His thesis is “Abortion except perhaps in rare instances,

is seriously wrong”(Timmons, 468). Marquis mentions the exceptions and rare instances

that must be addressed in order to eliminate ethically controversial situations. In cases

involving heinous rape, situations that could endanger a woman’s life, and revelations
Marquis conceives that killing human beings such as ourselves is wrong. He further

contends that if it is wrong to kill us then, abortion is immoral and not permissible.

Marquis argues that a fetus is equal to an adult human being. His primary argument

presents the fact that “a fetus possesses a property, the possession of which is an adult

human being is sufficient to make killing an adult human being wrong, makes abortion

wrong”(Gedge &Waluchow, 224). He places abortion in the same category as the killing

of an adult human being. Marquis is against pro-choice arguments and defends his

position that abortion is morally wrong. Therefore, if you kill a fetus, then (prima facie)

you act wrongly unless in rare cases you are avoiding an equal or worse act. The

pro-choice supporters “argue of it being prima facie to kill rational agents, therefore

abortions are permissible because fetuses are not rational agents, is refuted by Marquis,

as he questions why it is then morally wrong to kill young children, the severely retarded

or the mental ill”(Gedge & Waluchow, 214). Marquis holds a conservative view on

Show More
Related

  • Marquis´View on Abortion and Euthanasia

    762 Words  | 2 Pages

    Marquis believes abortion to be extremely immoral. However he mentions that there are exceptions in rare but certain circumstances where abortion is acceptable. We can infer that these instances would include situations that would put the mother or child at serious risk by keeping the fetus. He is frustrated that this idea has received minimal support recently. As a result he wants to influence change in society in hopes of receiving the support and publicity this topic deserves. Marquis’ primary argument stems from the idea of killing in general. He explains it is immoral to kill an adult because it prematurely deprives the human of something they may have valued at the time they were killed, as well as something they may had valued in the future. Although the victim may not realize it at the time of their death, they certainly had a valuable future ahead of them to experience which has been cut short. We are the only ones who can decide what is valuable to them; in this case we value some things more than others, and this concept differs from person to person. For example, in the present I value the life I am given and the opportunity I have to earn my degree at Villanova University while also valuing my future as well knowing that I have a chance to be successful in the future. Although I have not succeeded yet, I still value that opportunity I have and the life I’m capable of achieving through earning a degree. Therefore, he connects this same theory to the life of a fetus. By killing the fetus the result is the same, we are depriving it of its futur...

    Read More

  • A Case Against Warren and Abortion

    1103 Words  | 3 Pages

    middle of paper ... ... To speak plainly, the issue of abortion is a slippery slope of morality. While siding with the Pro-Choice side myself, it felt necessary to examine Warren’s opinion so as to give constructive criticism and potentially help strengthen her argument for the future. Through Warren’s lack of sound consideration for what constitutes a personhood and numerous issues regarding potential personhood, it is clear that the conversation still has a long way to go.

    Read More

  • Don Marquis vs. Abortion

    846 Words  | 2 Pages

    What is abortion? Abortion is killing a fetus inside a mother’s womb. According to Don Marquis, killing a fetus is morally impermissible. Marquis came up with an argument that views abortion as immoral and only in rare cases is it accepted. There are only a few rare cases that abortion is morally acceptable according to Marquis in his article, “Why Abortion is Immoral.” Marquis’s view on abortion is relatable because I am a woman and seeing as I am able to bare a child, I feel it is a women’s right to decide if abortion is permissible or not because it is her body and she has all the rights to her own body. Later described is FLO, one of Marquis’s arguments proving abortion is morally impermissible. I do not agree with the FLO argument. Marquis makes strong points, which can be agreeable, but in summary of Marquis’s arguments, he needs to have a more valid case of FLO.

    Read More

  • Summary Of Why Abortion Is Immoral By Dan Marquis

    1145 Words  | 3 Pages

    Thirdly, Marquis concludes from the last two premises and says that if you kill a fetus then it is prima facie seriously morally wrong of you. By killing off a human being’s potential values, it is cruel, especially to children because they are defenseless. Then, Marquis asserts that if fetuses and adults are in the same moral categories then the fetus can only be aborted if there is a serious moral concern. In the beginning, Marquis proclaims that there are special cases like rape and the mom’s life being threatened that would override the “moral wrongness” of abortion.

    Read More

  • Mary Anne Warren's On the Moral and Legal Status of Abortion

    1467 Words  | 3 Pages

    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).

    Read More

  • Mary Anne Warren's Characteristics Of Personhood

    1507 Words  | 4 Pages

    That is, a fetus lacks the capacity to communicate, sentience, emotionality, reason, self-awareness, and moral agency (729). The essence of her argument, on personhood, lies in the distinction of human being as opposed to person. For her this is relevant because biologically, fetuses are humans in that they genetically identify with Homo sapiens, but they are not people because they lack the central characteristics of personhood. In order to be confident that one is a person one must display these characteristics- these characteristics ascertain that one is a person. This should not be confused; by saying this she does not mean a fetus which lacks any of these characteristics is definitively stripped of being deemed a person, but that the lack of these characteristics bolsters uncertainty that a fetus is a person. ( Add a sentence her pertaining to the sentence above. Or something like it)Ultimately, these are the characteristics which entail confidence of

    Read More

  • A Critique of Judith Thomson’s A Defense of Abortion

    1883 Words  | 4 Pages

    Thomson recognizes that this thought experiment has a very limited application – specifically to those instances where a pregnancy is the result of coercion or violence. In the sec...

    Read More

  • Compare And Contrast Don Marquis Views On Abortion

    1193 Words  | 3 Pages

    Abortion is an important and rather popular topic in the philosophical world. On one side of the argument, pro choice, Judith Jarvis Thomson argues that abortion is permissible because the pregnancy might not have been voluntary or the mother’s life is at risk if she continues on with the pregnancy. On the opposing side of the argument, Don Marquis argues that abortion is wrong because it takes away all the potential things a fetus could value in their future life. In this paper, I will argue against Don Marquis view of abortion. I will begin by explaining that Marquis does not take into consideration the effect the pregnancy may have on the mother, and I will talk about how Thomson does take the mother into consideration. Next, I will criticize

    Read More

  • Why Abortion is Immoral by Don Marquis

    1273 Words  | 3 Pages

    Marquis’s argument that it is immoral to kill, and abortion is wrong because it deprives one of a valuable future has a lot of problems in my eyes that does not make his view on anti-abortion solid. The lack of arguments that do not raise questions that seem to go unanswered make it hard to be persuaded to change a pro-abortionist mind or even be open to understanding where Marquis’s arguments lead. His “what if” argument leaves room for anyone opposing to “what if” in any direction which is not grounds for an effective argument and hurts Marquis’s because a lot of the questions go unanswered in his essay.

    Read More

  • A Critique of On the Moral and Legal Status of Abortion, by Mary Anne Warren

    1015 Words  | 3 Pages

    Warren insists that the “moral” sense of human and “genetic” sense of human must be kept separate in this observation. As she defines the two, she goes on to say that the confusion of the two: “results in a slide of meaning, which serves to conceal the fallaciousness of the traditional argument that since (1) it is wrong to kill innocent human beings, and (2) fetuses are innocent human beings, then (3) it is wrong to kill fetuses. For if `human' is used in the same sense in both (1) and (2) then, whichever of the two senses is meant, one of these premises is question begging. And if it is used in two different senses then of course the conclusion doesn't follow”(Warren 434). With this she concludes that a human being is one that is a fully active participant in society. In the moral commun...

    Read More

  • Philosophy and the Morality of Abortion

    1931 Words  | 4 Pages

    To ascribe an entity with moral status ― whether an adult human, infant, foetus, or non-human animal ― is to declare that its treatment by other moral agents is mo...

    Read More

  • Ethical Dilemmas Surrounding Abortion

    1432 Words  | 3 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • The Moral Status of the Fetus in Abortion

    1684 Words  | 4 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Abortion: A Complex Issue

    2033 Words  | 5 Pages

    In this essay two different questions will be addressed. The first being whether a fetus is considered a person after birth and why it has this person making property. It is related to abortion because it is a subtopic that is frequently argued when it comes to deciding morality and immorality. The gradient view of personhood is important when answering this question because it could lead certain situations to be considered infanticide. I will also state my opinion on the gradient view. The second question that will be answered in this essay is concerning the hypothetical question of if the fetus had slipped out during Edelin’s procedure and been outside the womb, attached to an umbilical cord, whether or not it is illegal to ...

    Read More

  • The Ethics Of Abortion, And Virtue Of Ethics

    1210 Words  | 3 Pages

    In Aristotle point of view abortion would be considered morality wrong because he believes everyone has a person and we were designed for a purpose. Virtue of Ethics “can evaluate the morality of behavior by examining the moral character that such behavior produces” (Velasquez 488). According to Smith abortion is wrong because it promotes a moral character ‘characterized by careless, irresponsibility, dishonesty, and lack of principles” (Velasquez 488). This theory emphasizes that everyone should take responsibility for their actions and that our choices defined our character. I tend to agree with this we are all responsible for our actions and those actions tend to have consequences that tend to affect us personality. This view reminds me of the view of adultery cover in this chapter someone who commits adultery also says a lot about their character because it shows that we cannot trust on this person because they just can keep their word or because they are your seeking pleasure without really considering the consequences and who they can affect.

    Read More

More about The Morality Of Abortion

Open Document