...A Defense of Abortion by Judith Jarvis Thomson Abortion can be a very touchy subject for many people for many different reasons. The knowledge that goes along with having an opinion about abortion is sometimes nonexistent; I have heard presentation after presentation about what people’s opinions are without the intelligence that you should have when you are bill boarding those thoughts. Reading A Defense of Abortion by Judith Jarvis Thomson is an article that covers these topics from the most common arguments to her personal thought experiments and it a has a refreshing way of discussing the arguments. I also find that every time I read the article I change my mind about what her feelings about the subject truly are. The most common and the first argument that Thomson discusses is that people believe that the fetus is a human being from the time of conception. Thomson argues this point by saying we are told to think of the development of fetus to birth and through childhood as a continuous life and then we are told to pick a point and draw and line showing "before this point the thing is not a person, after this point it is a person", which in my opinion and I believe Thomson’s as well is just showing the fetus and even the infant is not a person and makes the argument invalid. Then she also goes on to explore the idea that just because an acorn becomes an oak tree it doesn’t mean an acorn is an oak tree, or should just say this is true since we say a fetus is a person? If we...
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...always have a choice? Abortion has been one of the most hotly debated topics in the United States since it became legal in 1973. At first glance the argument has two basic sides. A women’s right to choose versus a baby’s right to life. Diving deeper into the debate, one will find out quickly that there are very few radicals that believe that one option is correct in every scenario. There is a huge grey area between the two sides. An author by the name of Judith Thomson wrote an interesting article giving her take on the grey area within the abortion debate. She talks about the concept of being a good Samaritan and being a minimally decent person. She relates this to the area of abortion by saying that there is a certain point where it would be morally impermissible to have an abortion because it would violate our duty of being minimally decent people. She gives her own example saying that it would not be moral for a woman that has been pregnant for seven months to get an abortion in order to look good for a vacation. This may be an idea of where Judith Thomson would draw the line on getting an abortion. However, the problem with the idea of minimal decency is that it is extremely vague. Being minimally decent might be different for every single person. An extreme pro-life person may argue that keeping a baby is minimally decent in every scenario while an extreme pro-choice person may argue that there is no point where it is not moral to get an abortion. Personally, I see the...
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...an abortion but it (abortion) was illegal under all circumstances in her state. One is the body of a woman who died after attempting to give herself an abortion with a coat hanger. She was a poor woman who lives in the slums; she had no money to take care of the child and no way to feed her living children if she lost her work from the pregnancy. Another body is that of a one-month-old fetus that was aborted once the mother found out that it was going to be a girl. She has just had one child and wanted to wait for a couple of years to have another. While looking at these bodies the philosophers begin to discuss the question: “Is abortion immoral”? How would the discussion proceed if the two philosophers were: 1) You and Judith Thomson? 2) You ad Sidney Callahan? 3) Which position (s) do you find morally compelling and why? In this scenario, the two philosophers are sitting on a bench at the county morgue. They are looking at the bodies that died involving abortion’s issues. I will call case A – a woman who was six months pregnant due to rape and died from the pregnancy complication because abortion was illegal in her state. Case B is the poor woman with too many responsibilities in life, died from self-abortion. The third is case C, a body of a four-month-old fetus that was aborted just because the mother had a child and did not want one more girl currently. Before discussing the conversation between the two philosophers - Judith Thomson and...
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...Abortion is a widely controversial topic, which can be viewed from many different perspectives and moral theories. I will primarily concentrate on Judith Thomson’s view of defending abortion and provide further insight on her stance as it pertains to Sarah’s case. As well, I will also approach Sarah’ case from Susan Sherwin’s perspective and input aspects of my own opinions to support Sherwin’s argument. Judith Thomson claims in her article that women should have the right to choose to having an abortion under the assumption that personhood begins at the moment of conception (Thomson, 152). Common arguments for abortion come from the idea that personhood does not begin right at conception, but rather at a later point in the pregnancy and thus, abortion is acceptable because personhood has not officially started. Thomson acknowledges that a fetus becomes a person before birth because it acquires human characteristics (i.e. it has a face, arms, legs, fingers, and brain activity). However, Thomson’s perspective also emphasizes that the mother has the right to decide what happens to her body. The basic argument is that the fetus is also a person, and has the right to live as a person, which outweighs that of the mother’s decision of what happens to her body (Thomson, 152). Consequently, Thomson convincingly argues that there are special cases in which the mother’s decision to what happens to her body is greater than the fetus’ right to live and thus, an abortion is permissible...
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...Abortion: Pro-life or Pro-choice Abortion has been one of the most argued topics. Those who are against abortion are known as pro-life, and those who support it are known as pro-choice. Whether or not people support it, the biggest argument is whether or not the unborn child, or fetus, is human. Everyone knows it is wrong to kill a human, but at what point does an unborn fetus become a human. Most pro-lifers say it’s right at conception, and pro-choice say it’s when the fetus is born. Pro-life supporter, Don Marquis goes on to argue in Why Abortion is Immoral that abortion is a form of murder. He goes on to support his argument that such killing is immoral because it deprives us of a future of value and it falls under the same category of murdering an innocent human being. When someone is murdered, the murderer nor the victim’s friends suffer a loss as big as the victim did. The loss of a person has a big effect, but the bigger loss is that person not being able to have a future anymore. By murdering an unborn fetus that is stopping them from getting a chance in life and of a future. Marquis believes that unborn fetuses have the same rights as humans do,...
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...The Black and White of Abortion Abortion is arguably the most controversial issue that exists today. Abortion is a religious matter, questioning the humanity of a fetus and if one has the right to kill it. This issue also causes disagreement between men and women, and whether women have the right to bodily autonomy. Furthermore, abortion questions which right is stronger, the right to bodily autonomy or the right to life. Mary Anne Warren and Judith Jarvis Thomson have similar stances on the issue, although both claim to be pro-choice. Thomson, through the famous violinist example, argues women have the right to bodily autonomy, which is stronger than a fetus’s right to life. Warren, on the other hand, states fetuses are not persons because they do not attribute the five-personhood traits. In this paper I will agree and disagree with both philosophers, to a certain extent. Two central issues surround abortion. First, is it permissible to kill a potential human being? Most Christians believe that at the moment of conception, a human life is created. Other people believe a fetus is not a person until after the period of time when it becomes illegal to have an abortion, typically after five months. Judith Jarvis Thomson is pro-choice. She believes the woman’s right to bodily autonomy is stronger than a fetus’s right to life, and proves so through the famous violinist example. She believes a person does not have a moral obligation to stay connected to the famous violinist...
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...Is Abortion Immoral? Question 1: Imagine two philosophers sitting on a bench at the county morgue. They are looking at the bodies being brought in and three in particular interest them. One is a woman who was six months pregnant due to rape and died from the pregnancy complication. She wanted to have an abortion but it (abortion) was illegal under all circumstances in her state. One is the body of a woman who died after attempting to give herself an abortion with a coat hanger. She was a poor woman who lives in the slums; she had no money to take care of the child and no way to feed her living children if she lost her work from the pregnancy. Another body is that of a one-month-old fetus that was aborted once the mother found out that it was going to be a girl. She has just had one child and wanted to wait for a couple of years to have another. While looking at these bodies the philosophers begin to discuss the question: “Is abortion immoral”? How would the discussion proceed if the two philosophers were: 1) You and Judith Thomson? 2) You ad Sidney Callahan? 3) Which position (s) do you find morally compelling and why? In this scenario, the two philosophers are sitting on a bench at the county morgue. They are looking at the bodies that died involving abortion’s issues. I will call case A – a woman who was six months pregnant due to rape and died from the pregnancy complication because abortion was illegal in her state. Case B is the poor...
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...| | Abortion is the process by which a developing child is removed from its mother’s womb. Is it morally right to kill another human being? Abortion is an act of violence towards the child and mother no matter what the situation is. Who gave human beings the right to decide which human being is worth life? Why do we allow people to hold such power to something that providence has created? Once a child has been given a chance to come on this earth it should have the right to live full life, and given a chance just like the rest of us. A woman may undergo the physical part of abortion, but she is not the only one affected by the act, how about the emotional and mental stress that the close ones and family go through? Our society is has turned upside down. What happened to morals and values, appreciation of the gift of life? Have we become so engrossed in the things that are of less significance and forgotten how this world came to be? We have allowed morals, values and ethics to become debatable and in this process the important aspects of our cultures are getting lost. According to the Merriam Webster dictionary abortion is the termination of a pregnancy after, accompanied by, resulting in, or closely followed by the death of the embryo or fetus. Nicely put as a definition, but I see it as the murdering of developing babies. Everything that is created has a purpose and meaning, by killing a fetus we are depriving the child of its purpose and meaning. The main argument...
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... provided abortions and trained each other to perform the procedures. In the past century different states had begun to outlaw any procedure that would terminate or avoid pregnancy. In 1973(?) the United States Supreme Court asserted a woman's constitutional right to abortion in determining Roe v. Wade. After several decades of quiet disagreement, abortion has once again become a political hotbed. Under the direction of religious fundamentalists and fanatical anti-‐abortionists, this privacy right is in jeopardy. While both sides present strong arguments, these same positions have already been exhaustively debated and ruled upon by the Supreme Court. To turn back the clock on this issue would discriminate not only against women, but even more so against those in lower socio-‐economic groups. Therefore, the United States should protect a woman's Constitutional Right to choose. Should they choose abortion for ...
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...Introduction: There are three main different views of whether of the abortion debate. Most of the debate is if the fetus is considered a human or not is the main argument. For the pro-life side of the abortion debate, they mainly say that it should be considered human. Of course the pro-choice feel just the opposite usually. Me personally, I feel consider myself to be Pro-Life because I don’t think that we have enough information on the fetus and I could never consider killing a human (or even a fetus). I feel that the parents should have taken responsibility and taken the appropriate actions such as choosing absence, or at least using protection. Hopefully, you tend to see my view and will hopefully agree after looking at the opposition...
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...Meredith Kaiser Ajume Wingo Philosophy in Society Abortion is a hot button issue that has become the highlight of many debates, political debates, and religious differences. The issue of abortion is the contemplation of whether taking away the existence is of a fetus inside a women’s womb is moral or not. This debate has created political phrases such as “pro-life” and “pro-choice” (Lecture). Most would think that these two phrases are concretely of a singular meaning. “Pro-choice” does not simply mean that abortion is correct and moral but that women should have the right to choose whether or not the fetus is allowed to continue its existence in the womb of that particular woman. “Pro-choice” believers are perceived to believe that abortion is immoral under every circumstance, yet many “pro-choice” may think there are particular circumstances in which abortion is immoral and also moral. “Pro-life” on the other hand is not simply the political belief that abortion is immoral. Rather, it is the belief that the fetus inside a women’s womb is not just a fetus simply existing within her, but rather it is a separate and independent livening within the women whose life began at the time of conception. This view entails that abortion is murder because the baby is considered living on its own from the time of conception and therefore should have an opportunity to live a long fulfilling life without the interference of an abortion letting that happen. In this paper I will review three...
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...Abortion is a topic that has become one of the biggest issues debated in the United States and in other countries today. Different schools of thoughts have different ideas and opinions regarding abortion, some ideas are pro-abortion and some argue for the abolishment of it. Abortion is one of the most complex problems dividing America with either side being so passionate about their stand it has been known to cause a lot of hate the other side. Abortion is the removal or the expulsion of an embryo or the fetus from the female’s uterus resulting to the termination of pregnancy. Abortion may occur spontaneously through a miscarriage or may be artificially induced through chemical or by surgical means. An induced abortion refers to any induced procedure that is performed at any point during the pregnancy period which will lead to the termination of the pregnancy before the point of viability. The most common abortion method today is artificial and medically induced. Abortion in the United States was illegal in most states until it was made officially legal throughout the country following the United States Supreme Court ruling of Roe v. Wade on January 22, 1973. The case involved a single, pregnant woman named Jane Roe who wanted to have an abortion. During that time, the only way to get an abortion was through illegal and unsafe means that could endanger her life. Jane Roe wanted to have an abortion which would be performed by a licensed physician so that it would be under...
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...Moral Permissibility of Abortion One question of great importance in today’s world deals with the moral permissibility of abortion. Traditional thought teaches that only in very rare occasions should it be permitted. Many modern thinkers tend to leave it up to the decision of the woman, who is under no responsibility to the fetus because it is not a fully developed person. The question of the moral permissibility of abortion, however, draws out a plethora of other questions such as: can a fetus be considered a human being? If so, when does it become a human being? Does a fetus have the same rights as a person? Is a woman required to sacrifice her health, interests, and commitments to sustain the fetus? In this essay, I will review the articles of Margaret Little and Judith Thomson to expose flaws in their arguments in behalf of abortion, and provide reasons that reject its permissibility. Thomson’s argument is known as the “Bodily Rights Argument,” which utilizes the analogy of the unconscious violinist to show that a pregnant mother, who did not chose to be in that situation, has no obligation to care for the life of the fetus against her will. This analogy tells of a person who is kidnapped and, upon waking, finds herself attached to medical equipment and lying next to a famous violinist. The violinist’s kidneys have failed him and aren’t able to remove toxins from his body, so they needed her, the one person with the right type of blood, to save the violinist. The doctor...
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...One of the most controversial issues present in today’s society is abortion. Abortion is the termination of a fetus done purposely to prevent the birth of a child. Since abortions are now easier, less dangerous and more accessible than they once were; they have become the target of debate in every aspect of our lives. The issue of abortion has caused many heated debates in politics, religion and society in general; yet both sides seem to only see one side of the picture and avoid the issue as whole. One way of examining whether abortion is right or wrong is to look at whether or not the fetus is a person or not. This evaluation is done by Mary Anne Warren, in which she determines a set of criteria that both pro-abortionists and anti-abortionists can agree upon. Warren states that in order to be considered a fetus must: “have consciousness of objects and events, reasoning, self-motivated activity, capacity to communicate and the presence of self-concept and self-awareness.” Using these criteria, Warren determines that the fetus has not reached personhood and therefore, is not guaranteed the right to life. Thus, she believes that at least until birth the fetus has no moral status and a lacks a right to life. Warren’s argument may seem a bit flawed because her criteria do not provide a clear-cut way to distinguish between the fetuses in the stages of pregnancy or perhaps even the infant himself. According to her criteria, a newborn infant would not have a significant right to...
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...A Regrettably Inadequate Defence of Abortion This essay shall examine and critique Judith Jarvis Thomson’s analogy of the sickly violinist, as it relates to the moral permissibility of abortion. I shall conclude that the analogy is ultimately too dissimilar from a general case of abortion to be an accurate representation of the mother-foetus relationship. I will further conclude that at best the analogy only provides justification for abortion in cases of rape, and when a developing foetus becomes a threat to the mother’s life. The Impermissibility Argument Much of the debate concerning the permissibility of abortion surrounds the notion of ‘personhood’, specifically whether a developing foetus qualifies as such a being. Opponents of abortion expend much energy arguing for the conferring of personhood to the moment of conception, whilst the proponents argue this would be a misclassification. One would not call a pinecone a pine tree; to label a foetus as a person is similarly inappropriate (Thomson: Page 47). Thomson argues this tact distracts from the primary concern of abortion, for even if one grants that a foetus is a person, one’s work is still ahead of them to argue against the permissibility of abortion (Thomson: Page 48). The argument runs as follows: P1: As a person, the foetus has the right to life. P2: As a person, the woman has the right of autonomy concerning her own body. P3: The right to life is more important than the right to autonomy over one’s...
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