PHL 292 - Exam 1 Study Guide
Exam 1: Study Guide
Thomson argues that a mother and child are (during pregnancy) not “two tenants in a rented house mistakenly rented to both” but rather the mother owns the house. The purpose of this analogy is to reveal that other parties cannot claim to be impartial when they claim they cannot decide who of the two (mother/child) should live.
True
False
Thomson’s famous “people-seed” analogy is intended to be an argument from analogy in support of which view?
All abortions are morally permissible
Only abortions of fetuses that are the product of rape may be aborted
In all cases of pregnancy, regardless of the circumstances, the rights of the fetus outweigh the mother’s rights
Some abortions are morally permissible
According to J. J. Thomson, author of ‘In Defense of Abortion’, the standard argument against abortion is invalid for the following reason:
The argument actually fails to make a logical transition from the personhood of a fetus to the impermissibility of abortion.
The conclusion is false, even though the argument succeeds to make a logical transition from the personhood of a fetus to the permissibility of abortion.
All the premises of the argument are in fact false.
No one has ever been actually persuaded by the argument.
Some other supporting considerations for Marquis’ view are:
Understanding what the wrong-making feature of killing is helps to understand why it is also wrong to kill animals.
Killing is always wrong, unless it is in self-defense.
Understanding what the wrong-making feature of killing is helps to understand why those who are opposed to abortion may think certain (consensual) mercy-killings are morally acceptable.
Human life is sacred.
Both a. and c.
According to Don Marquis, author of ‘The Immorality of Abortion’, the reason abortion is wrong is:
All human life is sacred.
It involves the intentional killing of a person, which is murder.
It is an instance of what is wrong with killing in general: it
Thomson argues that a mother and child are (during pregnancy) not “two tenants in a rented house mistakenly rented to both” but rather the mother owns the house. The purpose of this analogy is to reveal that other parties cannot claim to be impartial when they claim they cannot decide who of the two (mother/child) should live.
True
False
Thomson’s famous “people-seed” analogy is intended to be an argument from analogy in support of which view?
All abortions are morally permissible
Only abortions of fetuses that are the product of rape may be aborted
In all cases of pregnancy, regardless of the circumstances, the rights of the fetus outweigh the mother’s rights
Some abortions are morally permissible
According to J. J. Thomson, author of ‘In Defense of Abortion’, the standard argument against abortion is invalid for the following reason:
The argument actually fails to make a logical transition from the personhood of a fetus to the impermissibility of abortion.
The conclusion is false, even though the argument succeeds to make a logical transition from the personhood of a fetus to the permissibility of abortion.
All the premises of the argument are in fact false.
No one has ever been actually persuaded by the argument.
Some other supporting considerations for Marquis’ view are:
Understanding what the wrong-making feature of killing is helps to understand why it is also wrong to kill animals.
Killing is always wrong, unless it is in self-defense.
Understanding what the wrong-making feature of killing is helps to understand why those who are opposed to abortion may think certain (consensual) mercy-killings are morally acceptable.
Human life is sacred.
Both a. and c.
According to Don Marquis, author of ‘The Immorality of Abortion’, the reason abortion is wrong is:
All human life is sacred.
It involves the intentional killing of a person, which is murder.
It is an instance of what is wrong with killing in general: it