The Pros And Cons Of Abortion

Abortion’s legalization through Supreme Court’s Roe v. Wade, has allowed for one in three pregnancies to end in abortion. This means that 1.5 million abortions are performed in the United States each year (Flanders 3). It ranks among the most complex and controversial issues, arousing heated legal, political, and ethical debates. The modern debate over abortion is a conflict of competing moral ideas and of fundamental human rights: to life, to privacy, to control over one's own body. Trying to come to a compromise has proven that it one cannot please all of the people on each side of the debate.

There are two main political parties you can choose from in the United States, The Democrats and the Republicans. There are also third parties you can choose from. People can choose to be part of any party. We are divided by the left and right side on the political spectrum. The right are more conservative and the left are more liberal. These two political parties show philosophical differences through their viewpoints on major topics. With so many differences between the parties, finding topics or issues upon which constituents agree on can be difficult.

“How can the “Dream” survive if we murder children? Every aborted baby is like a slave in the womb of his or her mother. The mother decides his or her fate” (Martin Luther King, Jr). This quote, by Martin Luther King Jr, represents how Martin Luther King Jr really feels about abortions, and how abortions relate back to the idea of slavery. As abortions are spreading all across the world many people have wondered if there are any positives to abortions? If there are not any positives to abortion then people may wonder, what are the negatives to abortions, and how do other people feel about abortions.

Abortion has been a controversial subject for centuries across the globe. Although the fetus may not be scientifically a human being, there is budding humanity within it; and hence trying to terminate fetus must be considered as criminal offense of killing a human being. Not many of the world’s population have realized the effects caused by the abortion and its impacts on the society. Abortion is considered to be immoral crime affecting not only the mother but also the family, the community, and most significantly the fetus.

Abortion is a subject that numerous people have strong opinions about; some believe that it is a form of murder and should be banned, yet others believe that the decision should be for the woman herself to make. In my eyes, the choice to abort or not abort is the woman’s, not the public’s. However, many men disagree with pro-choice.

Abortion is a very controversial topic in today’s society. Abortion is the deliberate termination of a human pregnancy, most often performed during the first 28 weeks (Abortion). Many people have issues regarding this topic, while some support the idea. This paper will be covering the pros and cons, people’s attitudes, and how a researcher could possible change your perspective on the topic at hand.

I hold the belief that a woman should have the right to have an abortion if that is what she would like. This means I identify as a pro-choice supporter. If the government ever decide to illegalize abortion, it would mean that women do not 'own' their body and instead the lawmakers do. As soon as a third party, such as lawmakers, are given the power to decide that abortions are wrong and they decide to ban abortions, women are no longer in control of their own bodies which makes them powerless.

Much of the ethical debate stemming from this topic lies with the issue of personhood. Personhood is a concept that defines what is it is that makes a person a “person”. There is no established criteria for this concept and it can vary depending on one’s belief. Patil, Dode & Ahirrao (2014), argue that the concept of personhood is the bridge that connects the fetus with the right to life. If one considers the fetus a person then ethically abortion is wrong. If the fetus is not a person then abortion is ethically acceptable. The issue on personhood mirrors the subjectivity of abortion debate.

Abortion, the deliberate termination of a human pregnancy through the agency of the mother, is a highly debated ethical issue. Abortion is an ethical issue because it involves violating the either the fetus’s natural right to live, or the mother’s right to freedom. The two most common approaches to this issue are pro-life and pro-choice. The pro-life approach argues that the fetus is a human who has sentience and natural rights, and therefore it is wrong to harm the unborn child. One of the most common issues within the abortion dilemma is the problem of personhood. There is debate over what qualifications the fetus must display in order to have the rights that come with moral personhood. One ethical principle that can be applied to the issue of personhood in relation to abortion is the Value of Life Principle. Under the Value of Life ethical principle, preservation of life takes precedence over all other ethical values. Therefore, according to this principle, if it can be determined that the fetus has the right to life, that right must be preserved. However, even if it is determined that fetuses have natural rights, the mother already has the same rights which creates conflict. The pro-choice approach argues that the fetus is a part of the mother, and therefore her rights to freedom and ownership of her own body are more important than a fetus’s rights. It cannot be argued that the mother is not a fully sentient being, and therefore, the mother’s rights are undeniable.

The ethical argument of abortion and whether or not it is considered immoral has been the focus of both the law and political controversy. Whether abortion should be considered unethical has ignited contention from multiple viewpoints. Does a pregnant woman have an ethical obligation to the fetus at all times throughout the pregnancy? In addition, does the woman have an ethical duty to promote the well-being of the fetus? Varying perspectives argue that it is a woman’s legal or moral right to terminate her unwanted pregnancy, or that “abortion is immoral but it ought to remain legal”. Others argue that not permitting a woman a choice over being pregnant is incompatible with justice in a free

“for you to see beauty here does not mean there is beauty in me. it means there is beauty rooted so deep within you, you can’t help but see it everywhere”- Rupi Kaur. Abortion is a topic seemingly unavoidable in American politics today. A room of agreeable people can be divided in an instant with the stance of the decision: “pro life or pro choice”. This legal procedure has many gray areas dealing with difficult choices and safety overall that show why abortion is wrong. In extreme cases, however, it can be justified.

The first ethical issue will be right to life and abortion. Abortion remains controversial and a highly debated subject. The ethical debate concerning abortion is the considerations of a woman’s autonomy and the rights of the woman and the unborn child. The parent/ child relationship and assessing the best interests of potential children also provide considerable scope for ethical discussion. (Jones K, Chaloner C 2007). A factor in the ethical future of abortion is the perception of morality, or of actively ending the life of an unborn human being. This process of deductive reasoning explains the most common anti-abortion argument: First, the fetus is an innocent human being. Second, it is morally wrong to kill an innocent human being and lastly, it is morally wrong to kill a fetus. This reasoning can also be applied to support a viewpoint to those who support abortion. First the fetus has no moral status. Secondly, it is not morally wrong to destroy that which has no moral status. Lastly, it is not morally wrong to destroy a fetus.

The social conflict over abortion has been and remains one of the most debated controversial issues in America. It first surfaced as an issue over two centuries ago, however, the argument has become very pronounced since the U.S. Supreme Court ruling of, Roe v. Wade, in 1973 which legalized abortion. It holds two opposing ideologies coined as pro-life and pro-choice. Both groups have powerful and challenging arguments for and against abortion, which gives us reason to believe that not only one side or argument is correct. The issue is one that questions a person's morality and ethics. The pro-life movement, or the right-to-life movement, in the United States contains elements that support its legal prohibition. Being pro-choice, on the other

Abortion is always argued with different cases and play a main role in medical ethics (blackwell.,p291).It is evidently reasonable for some to argue that in moral situation, abortion is a murder and it should be illegal, while others may claim that abortion is woman’s right when concerning on autonomy ( The abortion debate in Australia). Opponents of making abortion legal claim that abortion is a kind of murder on extend of moral situation. It is always regarded as a sin to kill a person who is no aggressor in most moral communities (new ethics 1). Fetus is a biologically human as it is not just a part of the mothers, such as a lung or a kidney. On the contrary, it is obvious that fetus is human due to he or she has genetic code of human and human parents as well (abortion myth p5). Moreover, it has potentiality to be a person with primary moral worth (text book p210-211). As Gillion (new ethics) pointed out, every person has his right to life, especially he is not an aggressor. This point is also been pointed by (Rebecca and john,Blackwell p204), “embryos has a right to life” .The fetus is innocent and

Thomas thinks that abortion always involves unjust killings because unjust killings, direct killing of innocent life is unquestionably impermissible. This would be considered murder of an innocent life and murder is always impermissible. Thomas, also mentioned that we need to hold back from directly killing of an innocent life. That innocent person has the right to life as well.