Abortion Ethical Issues
Pro/Con Analysis – Abortion: An Ethical Dilemma
Introduction
Aristotle supports abortion when writing that "when couples have children in excess, let abortion be procured before sense and life have begun; what may or may not be lawfully done in these cases depends on the question of life and sensation" (Politics, 7:16) The issue of abortion involves a reflection on the reasons for or against terminating the life of a fetus. Much has been written on the issue of abortion both in the popular press and in the philosophical literature. The debate focuses on two distinct issues: (1) whether a human fetus has a right to life, and, if so, (2) whether the rights of the mother ever override the fetus 's right. Often the issues are discussed independently of each other. Abortion is an issue that stirs up, on all sides, very strong feelings and judgments and very heated allegations. The most radical formulation of the anti-abortion or "pro-life" side of the debate views abortion as the murder of unborn children, and so as the equivalent of out and out infanticide, making the legal use of abortion since Roe v. Wade, at a rate of around 1.5 million a year in the United States, into a holocaust of the innocent fully comparable to the Nazi genocide against the Jews.
Pros of Abortion
I. Right of a Woman to Decide
Some women want abortions. The woman who is pregnant due to rape may feel devastated by the idea of carrying and giving birth to the child of the man who violated her. The woman whose health is already at risk may not want to undergo the increased risk that carrying the fetus to term would impose on her. The woman who has already had several children, and has now been deserted by the man she lived with, may believe herself unable to supply a decent life for yet another child. A woman may discover that the child she will deliver will be horribly deformed. A woman who is preparing to embark on a career that requires hard work and
Introduction
Aristotle supports abortion when writing that "when couples have children in excess, let abortion be procured before sense and life have begun; what may or may not be lawfully done in these cases depends on the question of life and sensation" (Politics, 7:16) The issue of abortion involves a reflection on the reasons for or against terminating the life of a fetus. Much has been written on the issue of abortion both in the popular press and in the philosophical literature. The debate focuses on two distinct issues: (1) whether a human fetus has a right to life, and, if so, (2) whether the rights of the mother ever override the fetus 's right. Often the issues are discussed independently of each other. Abortion is an issue that stirs up, on all sides, very strong feelings and judgments and very heated allegations. The most radical formulation of the anti-abortion or "pro-life" side of the debate views abortion as the murder of unborn children, and so as the equivalent of out and out infanticide, making the legal use of abortion since Roe v. Wade, at a rate of around 1.5 million a year in the United States, into a holocaust of the innocent fully comparable to the Nazi genocide against the Jews.
Pros of Abortion
I. Right of a Woman to Decide
Some women want abortions. The woman who is pregnant due to rape may feel devastated by the idea of carrying and giving birth to the child of the man who violated her. The woman whose health is already at risk may not want to undergo the increased risk that carrying the fetus to term would impose on her. The woman who has already had several children, and has now been deserted by the man she lived with, may believe herself unable to supply a decent life for yet another child. A woman may discover that the child she will deliver will be horribly deformed. A woman who is preparing to embark on a career that requires hard work and
References: Dworkin Ronald. (1994). Life 's Dominion. New York: Vintage Books. Devereux, George. (1954). “A Typological Study of Abortion in 350 Primitive, Ancient and Pre-Industrial Societies”, in Therapeutic Abortion. New York: The Julian Press Inc. David, H.P., (1981). “Abortion Policies”, in Abortion and Sterilization: Medical and Social Aspects. (pp.1-40) .New York. Chase, Nan, (1989, May 1). “Abortion: A Long History Can’t Be Stopped”, Vancouver Sun. Watters, Wendell W. (1976). Compulsory Parenthood: the Truth about Abortion. (p.52) Toronto McClelland and Stewart. McFarlane, Deborah R. (1993) “Induced Abortion: An Historical Overview”, American Journal of Gynaecologic Health, Vo. VII, No. 3, pp.77-82 Jacobson, Jodi L. (1990, July). “The Global Politics of Abortion”. Worldwatch Paper. P.53. Willke, J.C., Willke, J.C. (1985). Abortion Questions and Answers, Ohio: Hayes Publishing Company, Inc.