Abortion: When Does

Human Life Begin?

Courtney Shade
Pd. 5A

Thesis

A fetus should be considered a human

at the moment of conception because
they are part of the Homo sapiens
species, they respond to their
environment, and they grow and
develop.

Me
mb
er
of
spe
cie
s
Ho
mo
sap
ien
s

Arg
um
ent

Cou
nte
rar
gu
me
nt

The fetus has 23 chromosomes from

each parent, and only humans have 46
chromosomes.
At conception everything about the
baby is decided. Its hair color, eye
color, sex, body type, and blood type
are determined.

Others argue that the chromosomes in a

living cell provide a map for a human
life, but that does not make it human.

Res
po
nds
to
env
iro
nm
ent

Arg
um
ent

The fetus can feel pain, and moves to

get away from it. It also responds to the
mothers emotions, and reacts
accordingly.

The fetus does not actually feel pain,

and the movements are just involuntary.

Cou
nte
rar
gu
me
nt

Gro
ws
and
De
vel
ops

Arg
um
ent

Cou
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Like children take time to develop to

look like adults, a fetus needs time to
develop to look like a newborn baby.

Others view pregnancy as the biological

beginnings of life rather than a fully
developed life.

Conclusion

The amount of chromosomes is specific to each species,

and humans contain forty-six chromosomes. Therefore,
a fetus is human at conception because it receives
twenty-three chromosomes from each parent, which
combine creating forty-six chromosomes. Furthermore,
a fetus responds to its environment. By the fifth month,
or at around twenty weeks, the fetus can feel pain. It
can also react to the mothers emotions; if the mother is
stressed the fetus shows evidence of being stressed.
One component of living things is that living things can
grow and develop. Since fetuses grow and develop, they
are living human beings. Should abortions be permitted,
even though they kill living human beings?

References

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