Abortion Ethics Essay - 882 Words

The argument of abortion has been raging since the Supreme Court case, Roe vs. Wade, in 1973. This court case has divided the country into two factions: pro-choice and pro-life. Pro-life advocates argue that abortions are murder and extreme levels of child abuse. While pro-choice advocates believe abortions are a justifiable means to end pregnancies. The pro-choice argument is that the fetus is not yet a human being and its rights should not override that of the mother’s. An importance on what defines a human is very important. Is a human the result of sperm fertilizing an egg? At this point of fertilization the human is composed of a single cell with a unique DNA structure. Killing this unique cell would be wrong, however does this†¦show more content†¦Even if a fetus is defined as a human being because it has a potential life, if the fetus does not yet aspire to live. It is impossible to argue that the fetus values its future yet, so why should it have a right to it? It could be argued that as the child could not possibly survive independently of the mother, at least before approximately four months into the pregnancy, it is not yet an independent human being, but an attachment of the mother, therefore she should be allowed to terminate it, if this is what she wants to do to herself, as opposed to when the child is physically independent of the mother, when any potentially life ending action against it would be inflicted upon the child directly, not its mother (Kellough 35). Based on the view that the fetus is already a small baby, some extreme anti-abortionists would maintain that abortion is impermissible even to save the mothers life. The rationale behind this view would be that the child is innocent, and killing the child would be active, on the other hand, letting the mother die would be passive. This introduces two new concepts, the first being the mother’s rights in competition to those of the fetus and the second being the question of innocence and how we would define this (Langley). The majority of abortions, however, are not performed in the interests of saving the mothers life, but to deter inconvenience and difficulty on either her part, orShow MoreRelatedEthics And Abortion : Abortion Essay1724 Words   |  7 PagesEthics And Abortion According to the authors of a medical dictionary called; the free dictionary, online version, â€Å"abortion is defined as the termination of pregnancy before the fetus is viable.† Viability for a fetus is usually greater than 500 grams, or prior to 20 weeks gestation as noted by those same authors. An abortion may be spontaneous, commonly referred to as a miscarriage, or induced which describes the deliberate interruption of a pregnancy. Those authors assert that it is the viabilityRead MoreThe Ethics Of Abortion And Abortion1124 Words   |  5 PagesThe Ethics of Abortion Abortion, which according to the Merriam Webster dictionary (n.d.) refers to any action that is taken to prematurely end the life of a growing fetus in its mother’s womb before it is born, is a very controversial topic in our society today. Every day, several women die as a result of lack of access to proper abortion facilities (Kaczor, 2013). It has been estimated that 2% of women within childbearing age i.e. ages 15 to 44 will have an abortion (Medoff, 2013) and the yearlyRead MoreThe Ethics And Ethics Of Abortion1496 Words   |  6 PagesTHE ETHICS AGAISNT ABORTION Abortion has been one of the most debated social and political topics since it was made legal in South Africa. Through the application of different philosophical arguments this paper will showcase in detail if abortion is either immoral or permissible using ethical underpinnings (cite 2). In this essay abortion will be defined as the deliberate removal of a fetus from the womb of a human female through the request of the mother resulting in the death of the fetus. AbortionsRead MoreEthics of Abortion1933 Words   |  8 PagesEthics of Abortion Destiny Vazquez SOC 120 Instructor Slack Monday, April 16, 2012 Abortion, one of the most ethical issues debated today. It has been a widely controversial debate for many years dated back to even before it was made legal in the United States. Like most ethical issues, there are two sides as to what is the right thing to do. Some people think that abortion is completely and utterly wrong. Some people think that abortion is right when and only when the mother’s life is atRead MoreThe Ethics of Abortion2307 Words   |  10 Pages Background and Context Abortion is defined as a procedure that is done to remove an embryo or fetus from the uterus of its mother in order to prevent its birth (Roth, 2005). Abortion is categorized as a bioethical issue because it relates to the morals of biomedical advances, policies and research. Abortion is a difficult subject that can involve personal morals and beliefs, legality and religious values. The issue is often viewed from either the side of pro-life, which places emphasis on theRead MoreEssay on The Ethics of Abortion1070 Words   |  5 PagesThe Ethics of Abortion The Ethics Of Abortion is a very controversial subject that has been continually argued over for the past few years and probably many more years to come. The main controversy is should abortion remain legalized? Before we get into the many sides of abortion we must first define abortion. Abortion is the destruction of the fetus or unborn child while the child is still in the mother’s womb. This can be done by almost anyone from the mother herself to back alley abortionsRead MoreThe Article Ethics Of Abortion1869 Words   |  8 PagesIn the article Ethics of Abortion, much of the pro life argument seems to be rooted in religion, alongside the concern for safety. However, it is unethical to make a law based on religion and the safety concerns have pros and cons to both sides. Because of the extremely diverse circumstances, it is hard to make an ultimatum such as the banning of abortion. Abortion should, therefore, be legal and accessible in the U.S. because of our human rights, multitude of safety concerns and theRead MoreThe Article Ethics Of Abortion1869 Words   |  8 PagesIn the article Ethics of Abortion, much of the pro life argument seems to be rooted in religion, alongside the concern for safety. However, it is unethical to make a law based on religion and the safety concerns have pros and cons to both sides. Because of the extremely diverse circumstances, it is hard to make an ultimatum such as the banning of abortion. Abortion should, therefore, be legal and accessible in the U.S. because of our human rights, multitude of safety concerns and theRead MoreThe Ethics And Morals Of Abortion Essay1643 Words   |  7 PagesThe Ethics and Morals of Abortion Abortion, as it is, is a method to terminate a pregnancy by removing a fetus or an embryo out of the woman’s uterus. It is one of the most controversial problematic issues that is discussed throughout the decades. The topic of abortion was considered as a social issue that soon became a political and ethical subject. Abortion have become a heated public distribute on whether its method are morally permissible or not? Individuals have voiced the benefits and disadvantagesRead MoreResearch Final Ethics Of Abortion1438 Words   |  6 Pages Research Final Ethics of Abortion By Jeremy Jiles CJA 622 Professional Ethics in Criminal Justice David Wu October, 21st, 2014 Abstract Abortion is a very touchy and controversial subject in the United States. This research paper will discuss the different positions that abortion has and whether or not it is ethical for a woman to have an abortion, even though it is her legal right in most cases. i. Abortion is a very sensitive topic that is also a very controversial topic