The Art of Persuasion
The debate between Pro-Life versus Pro Choice is a difficult and unruly topic. Individuals with different backgrounds, opinions, perspectives, and experiences all have particular stances on this sensitive topic. However, any individual can make an excellent and persuasive declaration on their stance with the use of rhetoric. Judith Jarvis Thomson author of, A Defense of Abortion, and Sidney Callahan author of, Abortion and the Sexual Agenda, use rhetoric in a marvelous manner. Rhetoric is a powerful tool, as will be expressed in the pages to follow, because it allows authors and individuals to take a stance in a scholarly fashion. In both pieces authors give viewpoints from both sides of the abortion debate, which
…show more content…
Thomson’s action of presenting alternative authors’ work and investigations in her writing not only gives credibility to herself, but to the persuasiveness of her argument. Opposition statements to Thomson’s’ view are presented in her writing countless times. By presenting information from the other perspective Thomson is expressing her understanding and awareness of the opposing opinions, which in return, supplements her credibility. A powerful statement from the conflicting side is expressed by Thomson, “The most familiar argument here is the following. We are told that performing the abortion would be directly killing the child, whereas doing nothing would not be killing the mother, but only letter her die” (Thomson 50). Overall, this proclamation is very compelling and uses emotion to analyze the argument, however, Thomson makes sure that the definition of direct is clearly noted on the page and that there is an example of this definition so the reader is able to truly grasp the definition. Thomson uses this definition to her advantage in explaining that direct killing also means, “The end of saving someone else’s life” (Thomson, 50). The action of presenting an argument from the contrasting viewpoint and turning it into an argument that supports her stance is an extraordinary and clever technique. This particular argument is powerful because it includes emotion with the discussion of the killing of the child or the mother, therefore, it has
The ethical dilemma regarding the “Pro-choice Vs. Pro-life can be answered by the Deontological ethical theory. The Deontological theory is also called the duty-based ethics. To explain, Deontological theory states that the righteous of an action or a deed is determined by the principal motivation of doing that particular act ("BBC - Ethics - Introduction to ethics: Duty-based ethics", n.d.). In addition, according to Immanuel Kant, the philosopher who introduced this belief, the justification of an individual’s every action should be based on one’s own reason and mental analysis rather than analyzing it based on traditions (Kurtz & Burr, 2016). Furthermore, Kant’s work titled, “Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Moral, explained that human beings
Abortion has been one of the biggest controversies of all time. Many people believe that women should get to decide what she would do with her body. The definition of abortion is; “The termination of pregnancy by the removal or expulsion from the uterus of a fetus or embryo prior to being capable of normal growth”. Abortion is one of the most controversial topics today. Although there are two sides of the debate pro-choice and pro life, arguments are mainly centered around the Roe v. Wade decision, women’s rights and state restrictive laws.
Governor Mike Pence of Indiana recently signed the House Bill 1337, making Indiana the second state to ban abortion because of the fetus disability, ethnicity, or gender. The bill has escalated an uproar political debate between pro-life and pro-choice advocates.
Pro-Life or Pro-choice is the highly debatable question that is discussed when the topic of abortion is brought up. Abortion is one of many controversial topics in America. Abortion is the early termination of a pregnancy. Merriam Webster’s dictionary defines abortion as; “the termination of a pregnancy after, accompanied by, resulting in, or closely followed by the death of the embryo or fetus: as a: spontaneous expulsion of a human fetus during the first 12 weeks of gestation b: induced expulsion of a human fetus c: expulsion of a fetus by a domestic animal often due to infection at any time before completion of pregnancy (Merriam-Webster).” When a woman elects to end her pregnancy, she has two options depending on how many weeks
Pro-choice has been a major topic ever since the women’s movements started in the early 1970’s, a question sometimes asked is that, if part of the population are so pro-life and worry about protecting a fetus, how come when the child is conceived they suddenly bash at you for having that unwanted child anyways, and that is hypocritical. In this essay, details include would be why people choose to be pro-choice, NARAL Pro-Choice America, the battle for reproductive justice for women and their right to make decisions for their body, advocates that are pro-choice, proposals for a pro-choice government, and Tomi Lahren being fired for stating she was pro-choice.
The controversy surrounding abortion has been long debated since the Roe v Wade case (1973) as pro-life advocates and pro-choice advocates go neck to neck on whether the process should be banned or remain legal. According to APA (American Psychological Association), abortion is the “medical or surgical termination of a pregnancy and is one of the oldest, most common and most controversial medical procedures”. To be Pro-Life means to be against the termination of a fetus; one who is not in favor of the practice. Pro-life advocates believe a woman should continue the pregnancy and deliver the baby no matter the circumstance. Pro-choice represents those who believe the woman deserves a choice to carry the baby or have an abortion. Although the 1973 Roe vs Wade case legalized abortion, abortion is still currently a much heated debate in America as the surgical procedure is possibly on the verge of becoming illegalized. However, abortion should definitely remain legal for various reasons such as individual freedom, victim protection, life opportunities, failed contraception, and it is not fair for the government to make such crucial decisions for a woman’s life.
With recent developments in Northern Irish legislation for ‘on demand abortions’, the debate between pro-life and pro-choice has been thrown back into the media and the morality of abortion scrutinized under the eye of third wave feminism, which has reclaimed the 1970’s slogan of ‘The Right to Choose’. The following essay intends to discuss how abortion is always an option and never a morally wrong act, as it is the mother’s choice to do with her body what she wishes and such the fetus has no right to leech off the mother when the host is not willing. In this discussion one shall, as Thomson did in ‘A Defence of Abortion’(1971), accept the stance that a fetus is a person from conception, to avoid that issue all together.
Out of all modern social controversies, perhaps the most heated controversy is that of abortion. In today’s society you are either a Pro-life or a Pro-choice, there is not a middle ground. Pro-life are individuals who believe abortion is immoral and should be stop for the wellbeing of women and unborn babies. In contrast, the Pro-choice individuals do not necessarily promote abortion, they just believe women should be the ones to make decisions over their bodies and health. Although the two main sides of the abortion debate have concerns for human life, pro-life activists worries more about the fetus and morals, a clear difference from the pro-choice that worries more for the women and their rights. Based on the points I explored, the pro-choice arguments are stronger than pro-life arguments. Most of both groups arguments comes from peer-reviewed researches from well-known sources to support each individual concept. Effects on women,socio-politics, and fetus are some of the main point of conflicts between the pro-life and pro-choice advocates.
Many people throughout history have fought to have the choice to have an abortion if they like. For example cases such as: Roe v. Wade and Parenthood v. Casey, which made a big impact in the system.
The restrictions and the debate that surrounds the issue of abortion has changed dramatically throughout the course of history and it continues to change until this very moment. All around the world and in every known society, women have used abortion to control their reproduction, regardless of it’s legality. Abortion used to be exercised freely in the United Sates, up Until all the states started to ban It and place a lot of restrictions on it. They stated that a woman can not abort except in extreme cases in which the mother’s life might be in danger. After the restrictions caused a lot of health issues and raised concerns on women’s health, The Government abolished all the restrictions. In this paper I will analyze and discuss three main positions on the issue of abortion. First, there are those who associate themselves with the title “pro-life”. These individuals are anti abortion, birth control, embryo research or anything that can control or cause any harm to the fetus. Second, there are those who at the other end of the spectrum who firmly believe that if a woman decides to abort, then it is her constitutional right to do so without any interference from the government. Third, are those who believe that if a woman is raped or her life is in danger, then abortion should be completely and solely up to the woman, but other than that, abortion should be illegal. This group of individuals are also for birth control and do not oppose educating
The controversy that is abortion is a complicated matter. It affects Americans by making them choose between pro-life and pro-choice. Can one truly decide to be either pro-life or pro-choice? This choice is chosen by what one truly believes. Some may believe there is not a choice to be made but a side to choose from. “Pro-choice and pro-life don’t engage the central issue that divides them” (Oliver pg. 19).
The United States has been divided now over the issue of abortion for thirty-three years since the Supreme Court’s ruling in Roe v. Wade in 1973. As of today, over 45 million legal abortions have been performed in the United States. Pro-choice advocates hold these 45 million abortions as being 45 million times women have exercised their right to choose to get pregnant and to choose to control their own bodies. To pro-life, or anti-abortion, advocates these 45 million abortions constitute 45 million murders, a genocide of human life in the United States propagated by the court’s ruling in Roe v. Wade. The debate over abortion in the United States is thus a debate of two extremes. One side argues from the personal liberty of the mother. The
In Judith Jarvis Thompson’s article “A Defense of Abortion” she explores the different arguments against abortion presented by Pro –Life activists, and then attempts to refute these notions using different analogies or made up “for instances” to help argue her point that women do have the right to get an abortion. She explains why abortion is morally permissible using different circumstances of becoming pregnant, such as rape or unplanned pregnancy.
In “Unstringing The Violinist,” Greg Koukl analyzes two arguments made by advocates for pro-life and combats them with counterarguments. In contrast, “The Pro-Choice Argument,” by Tanya Luhrmann address the mindset of pro-choice supporters and provides a comprehensive response. This essay will explore each author’s technique the rhetoric their readers. I will go onto to address how each author of their respective articles make their arguments and why they do it. The goal of this analysis is to examine how the authors argue their opinion and determine which style is more effective.
Abortion. This word leaves most people feeling uneasy after just saying it out loud. The discussion of abortion is continuously left open-ended with millions of opinions, arguments, and questions. Abortions occur every single day leaving potential fathers devastated or thrilled, leaving friends and families broken and distraught or in contrast, proud. More importantly, leaving the potential mother uncertain and even destroyed. But with abortion in mind, what is considered wrong and what is considered right? What is moral and what is immoral? Is all faith in humanity questioned at the sole argument of either aborting or not aborting an unborn child? Moreover, who is granted the superior authority on deciding what is morally correct or incorrect this day and age. As I said before, bottomless questions and vast accusations tend to be the fuel for this fire. It is as if society is waiting for the perfect, yet, moderate argument on abortion, tying up all of the loose ends and meeting somewhere in between what is right and what is wrong when considering abortion rights. Is there even a common ground of understanding when debating the existence of another human? The endless and twisted argument continues to linger on, although Judith Jarvis Thomson’s “Defense of Abortion” communicated insightful views which in fact influenced my very own ideas on the argument of abortion.