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The Overlooked Rights of Men in Abortion Essay

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Abortion is a controversial topic regarding the rights mainly of the fetus and the mother. Men’s rights and involvement are generally overlooked in the abortion process. Since females are the carriers of the embryo, most of the time male’s decisions are not incorporated into the final conclusion. There are several debates regarding abortion and whose choice it should be to decide in terminating the fetus. Every father has different outcomes in a pregnancy and how much their decision should be included in the abortion depends solely on their involvement in the mother’s life. When the female deliberately engages in sexual intercourse, it becomes her responsibility to carry the embryo to term and to allow the fetus to have a right to her …show more content…

According to the Pleading Men and Virtuous Women article it states, “In this case, the man has voided any possible claim he has to the fetus when he decided to impose his will violently upon the woman against her consent. The violence done unto her nullifies any requirement on her to regard the man’s feelings or interests concerning the termination of the fetus” (Manninen 11). When a rapist violates a woman’s autonomy, he invalidates his reasoning to have a say in the decision of terminating the fetus. If the rapist’s desire was to have the female carry the embryo to term, the female would be obligated to proceed with an abortion. In the Decision To Abort article it states, “Because of its origin, this fetus is not a legitimate object of interest for the rapist and hence is not his. Consequently, if she decides to abort, she doesn't harm the rapist in anyway” (Hanrahan 28). Obtaining an abortion for the sake of the mother does not violate the rapist’s autonomy. Terminating the pregnancy does not result in any harm done to the rapist by the mother. The offspring is not considered to be the rapist’s because it is a result of an unlawful interest for him nor is it the mothers because she did not pursue her interest in a morally legitimate way. The Decision To Abort article states, “What we learn from this case is that if a fetus is the product of someone's illegitimate pursuits, then the fetus shouldn't be considered that person's” (Hanrahan 28). When a man pursues his

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