...epicenter of moral, legal, civil and political battles. At the heart of this dichotomous issue is a fundamental disagreement on the morality of abortion, the right to individual freedom and a theological disposition manifesting in a collusion of the separation of church and state. This essay attempts to throw light on the moral and social imperative - a cornerstone of most anti-abortionist arguments as well as reproductive freedom, a thought central to the pro-abortionist defence. The term ‘abortion’ refers to the act of willful termination of pregnancy resulting in the removal of a foetus. The methods of abortion are varied and address the termination of pregnancy at differing stages of foetal development. While emergency contraceptives and abortion inducing drugs target removal of embryos at early stages, surgical means of foetal removal are called into play during late term abortions. Traditionally, there has been a vehement opposition to later term abortions and has drawn strong parallels of murder. However, in more recent times drug induced abortions have drawn the ire of those opposing abortion in any and all forms. Anti abortion or “pro-life” advocates oppose abortion as they deem it an immoral act. The moral debate on abortion draws from two distinct premises. On one hand is the question of whether a human fetus possesses a right to life, while the other, belabors the question of whether the rights of the mother should be allowed to supersede the rights of a foetus to live...
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...study guide and anthology Contents Introduction A modern controversy: the case of George Tiller (BBC) p. 3 Definitions and technical language p. 6 Methods used p. 7 Family Planning Association fact sheet p. 8 Religion and the Sanctity of Life The Sanctity of Life p. 12 A critique of the Sanctity of Life: Jonathan Glover p. 14 Christian perspectives: Methodists and Catholics p. 16 ‘Ensoulment’, soul, and the sacredness of life p. 18 Religious views in conflict: liberalism and conservatism p. 19 Philosophical Problems in Abortion An argument against abortion p. 20 Personhood p. 21 A ‘person’ as rational and self-conscious: Peter Singer p. 24 Moral rights: the foetus and the mother p. 26 A woman’s right to an abortion: Judith Jarvis Thomson p. 28 ‘Why abortion is immoral’: Don Marquis p. 29 Anthology of Texts Unit 2 model answers: ethics (Edexcel) ‘Why abortion challenges us all’: Rowan Williams ‘Contraception and abortion within Protestant Christianity’: Gloria Albrecht ‘Virtue theory and abortion’: Rosalind Hursthouse Appendix: sample exam questions and level descriptors Notes Pages A Modern Controversy: the Case of George Tiller Profile: George Tiller (2009) To some anti-abortionists George Tiller, who was shot dead on Sunday, was a mass murderer known as "Tiller the Killer". To his patients and many pro-choice supporters, he was a hero committed to...
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...undesired pregnancy which introduces legal barriers that impede access to abortion highlights the most pervasive manifestation of unjustified discrimination against women's human rights. FEOTUAL RIGHTS Moral philosophy poses queries that question if abortion is morally permissible with the central contemporary argument regarding moral permissibility of abortion turning to the moral status of the human foetus. To intentionally kill a foetus is a paradigm case of an act that causes immense moral disfigurement to the mother ultimately serving as morally impermissible . Pro-life literature contends that retaining the intrinsic potential to develop into an individual suffices for an organism to be both ontologically and morally a person already . More generally it expounds that a foetus can exercise its right to life due to the potential to become a rational adult and thus as a result society has reason to confer legal rights upon...
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...making decisions on medical ethics.” The most important issue to consider when evaluating the ethical issue of abortion is the concept of sanctity of life which holds the idea that all life is precious and sacred therefore all life must be equally valued and respected. Natural Christian theologists Aquinas and Aristotle along with Schweitzer believe that as all life has the same value we shouldn’t be allowed to make decisions regarding abortion and we should let all forms of life continue to live regardless of any circumstances. However, philosophers such as Warren, Thomson and Glover argue that people have the right to decide on medical ethics as it is revolved around them (personalism) they believe that people should consider the embryo or foetus isn’t actually a person, therefore we have the authority over them and can agree on what we feel is the right thing to do with it. I disagree with this claim because as people we are exposed to many ethical situations which can have a great effect on us and we should have the first and strongest opinions on what we feel about situations even if this means not following religious principles such as the sanctity of life. The idea of potentiality is based on the pre- embryo has a potential to be human, then it should be given all the significance and respect of a person. This derives from the idea that all life has intrinsic value and people making an ethical decision on terminating pregnancy implies that that we de-value all form of life...
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...Abortion Introduction The abortion debate deals with the rights and wrongs of deliberately ending a pregnancy before normal childbirth, killing the foetus in the process. Abortion is a very painful topic for women and men who find themselves facing the moral dilemma of whether or not to terminate a pregnancy. It's one of the most polarising moral issues - most people are on one side or the other, very few are undecided. The primary questions The moral debate about abortion deals with two separate questions: 1. Is abortion morally wrong? 2. Should abortion be legal or illegal? Women's rights arguments in favour of abortion Here are some of the women's rights arguments in favour of abortion: • women have a moral right to decide what to do with their bodies • the right to abortion is vital for gender equality • the right to abortion is vital for individual women to achieve their full potential • banning abortion puts women at risk by forcing them to use illegal abortionists • the right to abortion should be part of a portfolio ofpregnancy rights that enables women to make a truly free choice whether to end a pregnancy This argument reminds us that even in the abortion debate, we should regard the woman as a person and not just as a container for the foetus. We should therefore give great consideration to her rights and needs as well as those of the unborn. Women's rights arguments against abortion Not all who support women's...
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...DEFINITIONS OF TERMS Euthanasia is the act of deliberately ending the life of a patient at the request of the patient or at the request of close relatives. “Euthanatos” is the art and discipline of dying in peace and dignity, practice of painless death. Euthanasia is commonly known as “mercy killing”, comes from the Greek root word that translates as “good death” but more strictly translated as “easy death”. It is the action of hastening death of a person who is seriously or terminally ill or injured to bring relief to the individual. Abortion - it means taking action to bring to a premature ending the process of fetal development, aborting or expelling the unborn from the womb and thus terminating the cycle of nature. To abort something means to stop something that has already begun. In military terms we say to abort a mission that has already begun or started. When we speak of abortion we mean to stop a life that has already begun to develop. Thus it is putting a stop to God’s plan for human life. OTHER TERMS Passive Euthanasia - is a refusal to use life sustaining medical equipment to prolong life where there is no (medically) prospect of recovery. Active Euthanasia - is to take purposeful action to end a person’s life, in a sense it is an aided suicide. Voluntary Euthanasia - Form of suicide where one may make a ‘living will’ which guarantees him a right to “die with dignity”. Involuntary Euthanasia - Socially or politically motivated acts in causing the death of people...
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...Abortion Abortion is controversial subject, which many people like to avoid. It is important to discuss such widespread social issue, with serious implication to hundreds of people and can increased moral consequences if not discussed, as many people have different attitudes towards abortion. Abortion can take place for various reasons, such as being afraid of financial hardship that child would bring, being subject to rape or incest, unstable relationships and sometimes may be an inconvenience to the woman who is career driven. With such reasoning to justify abortion raises many moral questions like ‘when does a human life which is morally equal to our own being? Pope John Paul II defines abortion in Evangelium Vitae as “a deliberate, lethal attack on the body of the child- with or without the aim of ending its life. The church has always condemned the act of abortion as the Catholic Christians believe that life is sacred from conception until natural death. Although, there is no clear mention of abortion in the bible, besides references to the treatment of pregnant women in war that can lead to killing of the unborn child. The church believes that the taking of an innocent life whether born or unborn is morally wrong. The churches view on abortion is backed up by a passage from the Declaration on Procured Abortion 1974: “Human life is precious. Infused by the creator, life is again taken back by him.”(Gn 2:7) and he will demand an account for it, for in the image of God...
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...Key aspects of physical, intellectual, emotional and social development Jade Morgan Key aspects of physical, intellectual, emotional and social development Jade Morgan Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs Abraham Maslow created his hierarchy of needs; this is shown in the pyramid above. The pyramid is all about physiological needs and when safety and security has been met can only then humans reach for higher goals such as status and self-respect. Maslow considered health and well-being on different influences and needs which include the PIES factors. Key aspects of development include the PIES factors: * Physical * Intellectual * Emotional * Social * The PIES are all linked to give a holistic approach. * Physical * This is things to do with your body. This includes the development of each system of your body and is affected by both inherited or genetic factors and lifestyle factors. * Intellectual * Intellectual development is to do with the growth of the brain and the development of your thought processes. This is things like memory, problem solving and an understanding of the world around us. * Emotional * Emotional development is about the growth and understanding of feelings. The ability to receive and give love, care and affection and to feel secure is found in Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. Emotional development is closely linked to the development of self-esteem. * Social ...
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...“To what extent should the law reflect a moral vision, even when this involves an interference with the rights of individuals who might disagree with that vision?” The relationship between the law and morality is one which has been a source of discussion and controversy for a whole host of reasons. It can be argued that although it is fundamentally futile for a particular moral vision to not influence law making, is it just for one’s perception of what is morally right to hinder the rights of others who may not share such moral visions? In a democracy, we the people decide who makes the laws for us – preferably the laws should reflect the moral vision of the people who we choose to represent us. However, due to the complex nature of morality the value system of the people tends to be varied. Thus, the law does not please everybody and as a result the rights of some individuals are hindered due to the contrasting moral vision of others. The purpose of this essay is to explore the way in which abortion as an issue is one which has been greatly affected by adverse moral visions. As a result, the rights of individuals in Ireland who may disagree with that vision have been affected. The Enactment of the 8th Amendment. The lawfulness of abortion under the constitution of Ireland can be considered as a topic which has sparked much debate between dissimilar views on abortion and bodily autonomy in Ireland. Kingston wrote that before the insertion of the eight amendment into the...
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...of science and technology as a positive thing, believing that it helps us to reach the most moral and safest outcome, however others would disagree with this and argue that allowing religion to control the development of both scientific and technology, will not allow people to think rationally and look at each situation independently and could lead to people making the wrong decision in life, but the right decision in the eyes of religion, which may not always be best. Those who would be in favour of society allowing religion to control scientific and technological developments, would argue that in history, religion has always had a great involvement in the development of science and technology and society used to turn to religion to help them make moral decisions. When considering embryo research, Doctor Jarmulowitz – 1999 said “it has always been accepted in British law that the earliest human embryo should be treated with respect and accorded a special status.” Although there is no law against embryonic research in the UK, each experimentation has to follow certain ethical guidelines, some say that this in a way is allowing religion to control scientific and technological developments. The British law, reinforces many religions by stating that embryos are considered to have a special status, this law was passed in 1990, and this illustrates how religion has been used to come to moral decisions when concerning scientific and technological developments. Another argument to suggest...
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...10/21/2012 Abortion: Is it her choice or theirs While a woman should have the right to choose abortion without being criticized, the issue of abortion is very disputable. Everyone has their own individual opinion. Many people believe abortion is a moral issue, but it is also a constitutional issue. It is a woman's right to choose what she does with her body, and it should not be altered or influenced by anyone else Abortion represents a woman's right to choose whether or not to continue a pregnancy, and this is a fundamental human right and reproductive freedom that is protected by the United States Constitution. This basic and important reproductive choice should not be made by the government or any other outside force against the woman's wishes but solely by the individual woman herself. Abortion is quite the controversial matter in society today; however, it is not widely discussed, and therefore it is hard for one to express their opinions on the matter. Regardless, many people have their views on the subject, whether these views be educated and well thought up, or simply a general view as to why abortion should or should not be practiced. However, for the most part, it seems that certain social groups of society tend to think the same way on abortion. Many forms of religion are opposed to abortion. In their eyes, abortion is a form of murder in that it involves the taking of an innocent life. Issues of life and death are closely linked to spiritual issues and should...
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...Embryonic Stem Cell Research In 1998, the world was introduced to the start of embryonic stem cell research. It has since been the topic of a heated debate between politicians, religious figures, ethicists, theologians and scientists. It raises the question of whether or not the ends justify the means. Many people seem to have a different answer to this question but the overall response from a Catholic position, from an individual and Catholic Church standpoint is loud and clear: embryonic stem cell research is immoral. The sanctity of life is held in high regard in the Catholic tradition, therefore making embryonic stem cell research morally wrong. To justify this, it is important to consider whether or not an embryo is a human from perspectives that are for and against this research, and their justifications. Whilst there is no united Catholic view, drawing from traditional ethics and Catholic principles can give an estimate of the overall Catholic perspective on the treatment of human embryos as opposed to the foreseen medical benefits on the other end of the spectrum. In a broad sense, the use of human embryos is unjustifiable and wrong in the eyes of the Catholic community, no matter how promising the benefits are as it involves the killing of an embryo, and thus by extension, can be regarded as murder. “We value the preciousness of life…as far as IVF embryos are concerned, those who have the responsibility make those decisions, have already made an important ethical decision…the...
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...Christian Ethics Ethics is derived from the Greek word “ethos” that is also comes from another word “ethika.” Ethika means norms, conventions, values, customs the society. Thus ethics is a discipline that examines one’s moral standards or the moral of a society. These are absorbed from family, church and friends. Why Study Ethics There are nine reasons why human beings have to study ethics. 1. Human beings are capable of reasoning from cause to effect with the understanding that everything done has effect. 2. Human beings are capable of making choices after comparing the alternatives, that is, internal and external. People have two cells namely: a. Real – what we have now b. Ideal – what we are aiming at 3. Human beings are self – conscious. This means we can study ourselves by being a subject and be the object at the same time. 4. Human beings are finite or limited not knowing what will happen from the next moment or next door. Thus, we must have principles to apply when situations comes. 5. Human life is an active dynamic phenomenon – We do something as if we do nothing. 6. People also can be taught to be good (Isaiah 1 :18) 7. Human beings are capable of filing an obligation 8. Human beings are also capable of understanding what moral terms like freedom, dignity and so on affects other people. 9. Finally, human beings need to survive. Human civilization, therefore, can not survive without ethical people. History of Ethics Outside Christianity, some...
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...Chapter 1: Ethical Theory Meta-ethical positions include: * Ethical non-cognitivism (concept that ethics is a matter of feelings) * Ethical relativism (concept that ethics is relative to a particular point of view) * Ethical objectivism (notion that ethics is objective in nature). Meta-Ethical Positions Ethical Non-cognitivism The basis of ethical non-cognitivism is that ethical disagreement can be a highly emotional affair where no amount of reasoning is likely to convince the other party. * Example: “Let’s just agree to disagree” Ethical Relativism * Ethical relativism says that while ethical statements are cognitively meaningful, they do not hold in any objective sense because they depend on our point of view. * If we accept ethical relativism, then ethical disagreement among people who do not share the same perspective becomes impossible. * It assumes that if people agree on something, then it must be true. * Ethical relativism is suspect for a pragmatic reason: it is fundamentally at variance with our social practice. * Example: “To each his own”, or the belief that what’s right for one group isn’t necessarily right for another Ethical Objectivism * Ethical objectivism holds that right and wrong are objective phenomena. * Example: “I’m right and you’re wrong” What is Ethics? * As a discipline, ethics is a branch of philosophy. * It deals with questions of right and wrong conduct, and with what we ought to do and what...
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...she was not able, at that time, to recognize her parents. She had been admitted to hospital on nine occasions due to continuous crying, believed to be caused by pain.2 Comparable stories about severely handicapped children can be found in several other countries as well. Both Brian and Kelly were not supposed to have been born in the sense that their mothers would have chosen for an abortion had they known in time about the birth defects their children would suffer. Brian’s mother would have undergone a termination of her pregnancy had the obstetrician and gynaecologist she consulted detected any abnormalities in the foetus and advised her thereof. Kelly’s mother had asked the obstetrician she consulted to carry out some tests regarding possible hereditary diseases and genetic defects, because she had decided to terminate the pregnancy if the tests on the foetus would show severe disabilities. She did so because there was a history of chromosome defects in her husband’s family and she herself had already suffered two miscarriages previously. * Ivo Giesen is Professor of Private Law and Civil Procedure...
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