Abortion is defined as the induced termination of pregnancy and expulsion of an
embryo or fetus that is incapable of survival. Abortion can be either a
spontaneous abortion (miscarriage), or a medically induced termination of
pregnancy. The sides of abortion are the pro-life, which is the side against
abortion, and pro-choice, which is the side that supports it. This issue should
be illegal except in cases of rape and danger to the mother, cause the unborn
person should have the rights to live and to have the same opportunities as
anybody else, even though if it doesn t have the love from the mother, it should
be give up for adoption. There should be more education on how to prevent it
from happening from school support groups and from the department of education
as Robert francoeur says in his book tanking sides. The pro-life side argues
that a fetus is a person and should have the right to live. But what does all
this visualization of the fetus tell us about the issue of fetal person hood? If
the fetus looks human, is it necessarily human? Ethics and philosopher Joseph
Fletcher warns that the powerful visual images of the fetus in the uterus seduce
many into a proleptic fallacy; that is, in their anticipation of the future
birth, they describe the fetus as a person and attribute person hood to it as if
it had already been born .
To understand why abortion should be illegal there has to be an overview to the
ethical question of abortion, and the value of a human life. Also the different
aspects and opinions on these issues, those aspects are: It s history, What does
the bible have to say in this issue, the doctor s point of view and should he
know when does a life becomes a human life, a woman s point of view and the
different types of laws that regard this issue.
Even though abortions are legal, there are some laws to regulate it. Bell and
Howell information and learning Critical Issue Essay: Teen Pregnancy says that:
Until the 12th week of pregnancy, medically induced abortion is a matter
between a girl her physician. After the 12th week, some states have laws that
may regulate abortion according to the teenager's health. After the 24th week of
pregnancy, many states have laws, which regulate and even prohibit abortion
except in cases.
There have been a lot of opinions regarding the sides of abortion and at what
part of reproduction does a fetus is considered a biological live. An
overwhelming majority of the experts answered emphatically that biological life
begins at conception or implantation. Pro-abortionist failed to produce even a
single expert witness who would testify that life begins at some point other
than conception or implantation. Some pro-abortionist did present an interesting
alternative point of view, which has become popular over the past several
decades. This alternative viewpoint basically sees all life as a continuum with
no specific beginning. It considers the continuum to run from sperm and egg, to
single-cell zygote, to multi-cell blastocyst, to embryo, to fetus, to newborn,
etc. this view is attractive because it supports the right of each mother and
doctor to individually choose when in the continuum the fetus becomes a person.
Unfortunately, this new approach fails to reckon with the obvious scientific
fact that there is a definite starting point in human biological life. At
conception the sperm and eggs, each of which contains only part of the genetic
material required to form a person, merge to form a new unique biological
entity. Unlike the sperm or egg, the diploid zygote possesses a unique human
genotype and the power of full differentiation, without which no human life can
be expresses. The haploid sperm and egg are only parts of the potential for
human life. The zygote is biological human life. As Bell and howell says in
their essay: Teen Pregnancy. Bioethics refers to the application of moral
reasoning to issues raised by medical treatments, technologies, and the life
sciences. Bioethical decisions are quite simply life choices -choices regarding
the meaning of life, its beginning, the quality of its continuation, and its
end. Bioethical issues include the allocation of health care resources,
life-prolonging treatments, organ transplantation, euthanasia,
physician-assisted suicide, abortion, new reproductive technologies, and recent
advances in genetics diagnosis and therapy. Such issues often prove
controversial and divisive. Occasionally, bioethical questions leave us puzzled
and confused: new medical treatments and technologies often do not come with
sufficient precedents to guide our moral reasoning . where the life of the girl
is in danger. Illegal abortions, although rare in the US, are common worldwide;
they carry a high risk of complications, including perforation of the uterus,
and severe bleeding. Infertility or death often results .
statistics show on Britannica s All sides to the issue that most induced
abortions are performed sometime during the first two months of pregnancy when
the fetus is one inch or less long. Over 90% of abortions are performed during
the first trimester (the first three months); they total about 1.2 million/year
in the US. About 140,000 second trimester abortions are performed yearly; they
represent 9% of the total. One common reason for abortions at the latter stage
of pregnancy is that an amniocenteses procedure has detected that the fetus has
a serious genetic defect. With currently approved technology, these procedures
can only be done later in pregnancy. (An experimental non-invasive blood test is
currently being evaluated in the U.S.) Another common reason is that the woman
is young and in denial about her pregnancy, and does not seek an abortion until
she can hide it no longer.
In the ancient cultures there are a few recorded legal prohibitions against
abortion in antiquity; there are even fewer ancient laws protecting the
practice. Abortion may not have been a prevalent issue in ancient times. Killing
the baby outside the womb after delivery, however, was a prominent subject of
debate much like abortion is today, for most of the same reasons.
Hippocrates, the father of the modern medicine and sopranos the greatest of the
ancient gynecologist, both opposed abortion, though whether this was for
protection of the mother or fetus is not clear. The Hippocratic oath, formulated
around 400 BC and taken verbatim by U.S. physicians until recently, clearly
prohibits abortion; however, it has been contested on almost all points since
the day it was written.
The Bible never mentions the word abortion , as a result some people wold say
that this practice is not prohibit, but the Bible appears to be silent on the
topic of abortion. There are some quotes of some anti-abortion authors on the
opinion of the Bible in this issue: John T. Noonan said: the Old Testament has
nothing to say on abortion. And John Connery said: if anyone expects to find
an explicit condemnation of abortion in the New Testament, he will be
disappointed. The silence of the New Testament regarding abortion surpasses even
that of the Old Testament .
Spontaneous abortions, or miscarriages, occur for many reasons, including
disease, trauma, or genetic or biochemical incompatibility of mother and fetus.
Occasionally a fetus dies in the uterus but fails to be expelled, a condition
termed a missed abortion.
Illegal abortions, although rare in the US, are common worldwide; they carry a
high risk of complications, including perforation of the uterus, and severe
bleeding. Infertility or death often results.
The woman point of view is very important, since she is the one going through
the thought process of deciding if the child should live or not, as Caroline
Garage says in her home page: that basic fact is simple: life begins not at
birth, but at conception. The beginning of human life is not religious, moral or
philosophical issue: it is a scientific and biological one. From the time those
23 cromozones become 46 onward, the unborn is a living, developing individual
with a unique genetic makeup . Some woman feel that the medical community
should emphasize on finding safe and effective birth control that would
eliminate the need for abortion. That would be the easiest solution, because the
debate will still rage on, and some abortions will still occur. But before
effective birth control is found, before society changes its attitude toward
pregnancy, and makes it more acceptable for woman or young girls to be pregnant.
The law opinion of the subject is based on the English law. Henry Bracton, the
father of the common la , apparently regarded abortion (at least after 5 or 6
weeks) as homicide and it seems that at early common law abortion was a felony,
and, therefore, a hanging offense. Later commentators, Coke and Blackstone, held
expressly that abortion after quickening was not the crime of murder, but a
separate crime.
The American law, before general codification of law became commonplace in the
19th century; criminal law was based on the common law inherited from England.
Therefore, states followed the law, as it existed in England. Exactly what this
was could vary depending on when the state is said to have received the common
law.
There have been some judicial cases involving abortion the most popular one was
the case of Roe v. Wade. Even though the court legalizes abortion in all 50
states after this case I m opposed to the legalization of it, To summarize this
case, (Roe v. Wade: First step or misstep)
A pregnant single woman brought a class action challenging the constitutionality
of the Texas criminal abortion laws, which proscribed procuring or attempting an
abortion except on medical advice for the purpose of the saving the mother s
life. The plaintiff s assertion was that prohibiting abortion at any time before
birth violated a woman s constitutional right to privacy. In deciding the case
the court attempted to avoid the issue of when life begins. Justice Blackmum,
writing for the majority, asserted, we need not to resolve the difficult
question of when life begins this judiciary is not in a position to speculate as
to the answer. The court then ruled the constitutional right of privacy was
broad enough to encompass a woman s decision whether or not to terminate her
pregnancy. In other words, abortion should be a private matter between a woman
and her doctor. However, the court also ruled that the privacy right
involved cannot be said to be absolute. In particular, a state may properly
assert important interest in safeguarding health in maintaining medical
standards, and in protecting potential life (abortion perspective).
This ruling has several significant flaws, because the court ruled that the
constitutional to privacy protected abortion in part because it was not possible
to reach agreement on when life begins, asserting that a woman should be allowed
to make her own choice in this matter at least up to a certain point. But in
defining that certain point the court introduced the viability s the beginning
of meaningful life. This is illogical, causes on the one hand on the idea that
life is beginning is indeterminate and on the other hand on a definition of when
meaningful life begins. Also, it raises the obvious question of the validity of
the court s definition of meaningful life and their determination of its
starting point. With regard to the former, nowhere in the ruling does the court
ignored modern scientific evidence concerning the beginning of biological life.
In conclusion, there has been a lot of opinions on this side of abortion, that
have been stated in this paper, those where, the laws from the Bible, the
Ancient history and the medical viewpoint. Some of these opinions may have been
on the other side of abortion, but that still doesn t gives the right to nobody
to play the role of god and decide who is going to live and who is not.
Pro-life gives a change to the unborn without evens knowing what kind this child
accomplish during his live. Since the fetus is not capable of speaking his mind
this side tries to defend him and stand up for him in does life changing moments
when a mother decides to have an abortion or (the best alternative)not having
it.
Pro-life groups are very active at the state level and have successfully
influenced legislators and governors into creating many laws that restrict
abortion. Many of the laws have been ineffectual; they are so broadly worded
that they are usually declared unconstitutional shortly after having been signed
into law. Those laws that survive are not particularly effective; they often
merely deflect abortion seekers to nearby states. At this time, compromise
between pro-life and pro-choice supporters appears to be impossible.
Scientific research has successfully shown that abortion causes many
psychological side effects. It leaves the woman with many strong feelings about
their decision. They feel sadness, wishing things could have been different and
grief for a lost life. Guilt arises because they know a fetus represents an
independent life. Anger builds up towards other people having to do with their
decision. Sometimes the mother may feel that she has in fact been abandoned.
Most of the entire mothers feel ashamed and embarrassed about her action. People
close to the mother may be angry with her for ending her pregnancy and make it
difficult for her to deal with. Even years after the abortion, women tent to
remember the regretful experience.
Word cited page
Abortion perspective Bible. What the Bible has to say about abortion? July 14
2000. http://potterschool.com/abortion/law.html.
Abortion perspective law. Roe v. wade: first step or misstep July 12 2000.
http://potterschool.com/abortion/law.html.
Abortion perspective medicine. Shouldn t a doctor know when life begins? July
12 2000. http://potterschool.com/abortion/law.html.
Abortion perspective history. Interpreting the past July 13 2000.
http://potterschool.com/abortion/law.html.
Bell and Howell information and learning Critical Issue Essay: Teen Pregnancy
July
14 2000.
http://www.bellhowell.infolearning.com/hp/Support/K12/Critical9899/teen.html.
Britannica online encyclopedia. Abortion, euthanasia, and the value of human
life
July15 2000.
http://www.britannica.com/bcom/eb/article/0/0,5716,108570+12,00.html.
Britannica online encyclopedia. All sides to the issue July 15 2000.
http://search.britannica.com/frm_redir.jsp?query=abortion+sides&redir=http://www.religioustolerance.
org/abo_pba.htm
Howell, Joseph H and Sale, William Frederick. Life choices. Washington, D.C.:
George
Town university, 1995.
Riddle, John M. Eve s Herbs. Massachusetts: Harvard university press, 1997.
Francoeur, Robert t. Taking sides. Dushkin publishing group, 1996.
Risen, James & Thomas, Judy L. Wrath of Angels the American Abortion War. Basic
Books, 1998.
Weir, Robert F. Physician assisted suicide. Indiana: Indiana university press,
1997.
State abortion laws. State abortion laws
http://members.aol.com/_ht_a/abrtrbng/abortl.htm.