Abortion

SUBTITLE
A case study
A sixteen-year-old girl named Jenny, from a rural North
Carolina town, got pregnant by her high school boyfriend.
She kept the news from her father who was a stern Baptist
pastor. Jenny was raised with the conviction that abortion
was murder and, knowing her fathers extreme
condemnation of premarital sex, she couldnt confess her
pregnancy to him. Trapped by two unthinkable alternatives,
she ignored the situation until it was too late and she
secretly gave birth in her bedroom. She then panicked and
felt that disposing of the baby was the only way to make
her problem go away
 . She suffocated the baby by closing it in a plastic bag and
then putting it in a garbage can outside of a fast food
restaurant. Shortly after, a restaurant worker discovered the
dead infant and reported it to the police, who successfully
traced it back to Jenny. Investigators considered that the
baby might have died naturally before it was placed in the
bag. They gave Jenny the benefit of the doubt without
pushing the matter too far. She was not charged with a
serious crime, and was only required to go to counseling.
Stories like this unfortunately occur too often, and
they illustrate how women of all ages are trapped by
unwanted pregnancies, often with no easy path to resolving
their crisis. Abortion is an option, but it is a very
controversial one and, in fact, probably the most
contentious moral issue we have today.
Background
Perhaps the biggest mistake when looking at the abortion
question is to assume that all abortions are the same; we
might think that they are all immoral, or, on the other
hand, that they are all morally permissible. The fact is,
though, that there are perhaps 100 distinct abortion
scenarios that differ regarding the fetuss age and health,
the mothers life and health, and possible adverse impact
on society. Ideally, each one of these scenarios should be
assessed on its own terms before making a moral
pronouncement.
The fetal development
Divided into 3 trimesters
1st trimester - male sperm and female egg merge and become a single-cell
zygote and at by the eighth week it is capable of some motion and its eyes
begin to form
2nd trimester - around 13 weeks, the embryo is from thereon referred to as a
fetus and is about an inch and a half in size. As the fetus continues to grow,
by week 16-20 the woman can feel some fetal movement, an event called
quickening
3rd trimester - the fetus begins to exhibit regular brain wave patterns, and
not just small bursts of brain activity. It is about 8 inches long and is
sufficiently developed so that it could possibly survive premature birth,
which is called viability, and by weeks 35-40, at around 20 inches, it is fully
developed and ready for birth.
History of anti abortion laws
Ancient attitudes
- Persian Empire abortifacients were known and that criminal abortions
were severely punished.
- abortion was practiced in Greek times as well as in the Roman Era,
and that it was resorted to without scruple.
Soranos described as the creates gynecologist of ancient history
opposed on Romes abortion practices but he found it necessary to think
about the life of the mother and resorted to abortion when he felt the
procedure is advisable
- Greek and Roman law afforded little protection to the unborn
- Ancient religion did not bar abortion.
 The common law
- In late 1800s, abortion performed before quickening --
the first recognizable movement of the fetus in utero,
appearing usually from the 16th to the 18th week of
pregnancy -- was not an indictable offense.
- Prior to quickening the fetus was to be regarded as part of
the mother, and its destruction, therefore, was not
homicide
- In 19th century, it has been proved that before quickening,
the embryo is now more than a baby.
 The English statutory law
- Abortion Act of 1967 permits a licensed physician to perform an
abortion where two other licensed physicians agree;
(a) that the continuance of the pregnancy would involve risk to the
life of the pregnant woman, or of injury to the physical or mental
health of the pregnant woman or any existing children of her family,
greater than if the pregnancy were terminated,
(b) that there is a substantial risk that if the child were born it
would suffer from such physical or mental abnormalities as to be
seriously handicapped.
- Permits a physician to terminate a pregnancy where he is of the
good-faith opinion that the abortion is immediately necessary to
save the life or to prevent grave permanent injury to the physical or
mental health of the pregnant woman.
 The position of the American Medical Association.
- Committee on Human Reproduction urged the adoption of
a stated policy of opposition to induced abortion, except
when there is documented medical evidence of a threat to
the health or life of the mother, or that the child may be
born with incapacitating physical deformity or mental
deficiency, or that a pregnancy resulting from legally
established statutory or forcible rape or incest may
constitute a threat to the mental or physical health of the
patient
- the opposition between doctors stirred up and awaken the
religious opposition to abortion.
Abortion Methods
vacuum aspiration, which can be performed at any time during the
first trimester of pregnancy until week 12. One type of vacuum
aspiration involves the use of a syringe to extract the embryo.
dilation and curettage, which involves opening the cervix and
scraping out the embryo with a curved instrument called a curette.
It can be performed between 6 and 16 weeks of pregnancy
dilation and evacuation, which involves dismembering and
removing the fetus piece by piece with forceps
instillation, which involves injecting a chemical solution into the
amniotic sac; the fetus absorbs it, causing it to die, and it is then
expelled from the uterus.
ETHICAL ISSUES
The moral debate regarding abortion focuses on two
distinct issues:
(1) whether a human fetus has a right to life.
(2) whether the rights of the mother ever override the
fetus's right.
Fetal Right to Life and the
Criterion of Personhood
Every person that we meet has a right to life but there is a
difference between us and the fetus. They are not typical
people but are they relevantly similar to typical people so
that we can readily recognize that they too have rights to
life.
Right to life and the concept of moral personhood.
- Life, if you are alive then you have moral personhood
The concept of personhood
- consciousness, that is, having sensory experiences and awareness
of ones surroundings
- Sentience, the ability to experience pleasure and pain
- Self awareness
- A narrower criterion of personhood that was adopted by
contemporary ethicists
- or the ability to conceive of oneself as existing in time

- Human-like-rationality,
- That is, the kind of rationality that on this planet is exhibited only by
humans.
- includes the ability to develop a complex language, to make
complex tools, and to understand the world around us.

Does a fetus exhibit any of these qualities during any stages of

development from zygote onwards?
 human zygotes are alive, and early stage embryos exhibit
animal life. But in our part of the world, mere animal life
isnt a criterion of personhood that we adopt. As to
consciousness and sentience, during the last trimester of
pregnancy fetuses do exhibit these features. But then so do
chickens and lizards, and many of us would feel
uncomfortable adopting a criterion of personhood that
includes these creatures. As to self-awareness and human-
like rationality, fetuses do not have these features at any
stage of development. Thus, when considering the features
that fetuses actually exhibit at various stages of
development, they dont have the ones that most of us
would associate with personhood.
Fetal Right to Life and the
Potentiality and Biological
Continuity Arguments
Potentiality argument
- fetuses are potentially self-aware and potentially have
human-like rationality. While they dont yet exhibit these
features, they are uniquely organized so that, allowing
nature to follow its course, they will in time develop them. To
some extent we even rely on the concept of potential self-
awareness with adult notions of personhood.
 biological continuity argument, holds that no meaningful
biological line of distinction can be drawn between
embryos and adults that would confer personhood to
adults, but not to embryos. On this view, there is no
specific point in development of human life that would
justify assuming that it becomes a different thing.
Conception is the only meaningful point in development
that signals the presence of moral worth. At the moment of
conception, the organism is a new genome and a new
entity capable of its own internally self-directed
development. That feature remains the same throughout
its entire lifespan.
no clear biological starting point that can be designated as
the moment of conception; without that, no clear
biological distinction can be drawn between even (1) a
completely separate sperm and egg and (2) an adult
human
Balancing the Fetuss and
Mothers Rights
If we all agreed that fetus has a right to life then, does
mother's right of self-determination overrides the rights of
the fetus?
- It is the mother's body which is affected by the pregnancy,
and it is her life, health, and emotional state that may be
drastically impacted. These reasons have a little weight.
Commonly accepted extenuating circumstances concern
pregnancies that result from rape and incest, and those in
which the womans life is at risk. Does this overrides the
fetus right to life, if it does then all abortions are wrong and
there are no exemptions.
Three specific situations the rights of
the mother override the rights of a fetus
The first pertains to pregnancies that result from rape.
The second thought experiment pertains to pregnancies in
which the womans life is at risk.
The third thought experiment involves pregnancies that
result from contraception failure.
[CONSTITUTIONAL ISSUES
The Right to Privacy
- Constitution does not explicitly mention any right of
privacy. In a line of decisions, however, going back perhaps
as far as . . . 1891, the Court has recognized that a right of
personal privacy, or a guarantee of certain areas or zones
of privacy, does exist under the Constitution
- This right of privacy . . . is broad enough to encompass a
womans decision whether or not to terminate her
pregnancy.
- womans right is absolute and that she is entitled to
terminate her pregnancy at whatever time, in whatever
way, and for whatever reason she alone chooses
 Specific and direct harm medically diagnosable even in
early pregnancy may be involved. Maternity, or additional
offspring, may force upon the woman a distressful life and
future. Psychological harm may be imminent. Mental and
physical health may be taxed by child care. There is also
the distress, for all concerned, associated with the
unwanted child, and there is the problem of bringing a child
into a family already unable, psychologically and otherwise,
to care for .
All these are factors the woman and her responsible
physician necessarily will consider in consultation
Legal Personhood and Fetuses
the fetus is a person within the language and meaning of the Fourteenth Amendment. In
support of this, they outline at length and in detail the well-known facts of fetal development. If
this suggestion of personhood is established, the appellants case, of course, collapses, for the
fetus right to life would then be guaranteed specifically by the Amendment. The appellant
conceded as much on reargument. On the other hand, the appellee conceded on reargument
that no case could be cited that holds that a fetus is a person within the meaning of the
Fourteenth Amendment.
The Constitution does not define person in so many words. Section 1 of the
Fourteenth Amendment contains three references to person. The first, in defining citizens,
speaks of persons born or naturalized in the United States. The word also appears both in the
Due Process Clause and in the Equal Protection Clause. Person is used in other places in the
Constitution: in the listing of qualifications for Representatives and Senators . . . But in nearly
all these instances, the use of the word is such that it has application only postnatally. None
indicates, with any assurance, that it has any possible pre-natal application.
All this, together with our observation, supra, that throughout the major portion of the
19th century prevailing legal abortion practices were far freer than they are today, persuades
us that the word person, as used in the Fourteenth Amendment, does not include the unborn.
Supreme Court Decisions on
Abortion
Supreme Court ruling Roe v. Wade,
- Established the Constitutional right of women to have abortions, depending on which
stage of pregnancy they are in.
- First trimester, women can have abortions as they so choose without interference from
their State government.
- During the second trimester, States can restrict abortion, but only if an abortion procedure
poses a special health risk to the woman; the status of the fetus is not a consideration.
- During the third trimester, States can restrict abortions as they see fit in the interest of
protecting the potential life of the fetus, as long as there is an exception to preserve the
life and health of the woman.
- The Courts decision was based on four basic points. First, throughout most of Western
Civilization, laws regarding abortion were at least somewhat liberal. Second, the
Constitution includes a right to privacy, which extends to womens control over their
bodies.
ARGUMENTS PRO AND CONTRA
The Conservative Position
1. The wrongness of intentional killing: abortion is the intentional
killing of a potential person, and, except in rare situations,
intentional killing is morally wrong. This is perhaps the strongest
argument from the conservative side, particularly since it draws on
a fundamental conception of all civilized societies that intentional
killing is wrong. There are two main criticism of this argument. First,
it presumes that the fetus has personhood at all stages of
development, which, as weve seen above, is a matter of debate.
Second, it sidesteps the issue of when intentional killing is justified.
Societies typically permit intentional killing in cases of self-defense,
war, capital punishment, and perhaps euthanasia. There may be at
least some situations in which similar justifications apply to
abortion.
 2. The responsibility to protect the innocent: the fetus is an
innocent being which cannot speak for its own interests,
and, thus, society must actively defend the fetuss
interests. Again, the notion of defending the innocent is an
important value in society. Criticisms here, though, are the
same as with the previous argument. If a fetus does not
have moral personhood, then it is technically not an
innocent being in the moral sense of the term. Second,
even if it is an innocent being, there are extenuating
circumstances in which killing innocent people may be
justified, such as civilian casualties in war and euthanasia
 3. Religious tradition: religious scriptures and traditions
suggest that personhood begins at the moment of conception
and that abortion is wrong. Much of the force behind the
conservative view of abortion comes from religious tradition,
perhaps more so than from the above two arguments which
are more secular in nature. The strength of this argument is
that religious traditions have been major sources of values in
most societies throughout history, and such traditions have a
built in authority. A criticism of this, though, is that religious
traditions vary greatly, and have often supported values that
today we reject, such as sexism, racism, and even slavery.
Further, they are stipulated as truths which believers accept
through faith, often without rational inquiry. While religious
believers are entitled to submit to the authority of their
tradition, it is less clear that people from other traditions
should be compelled to accept that authority.
 . Women need to take responsibility: sexual activity has serious
consequences, and women who choose to be sexually active
assume the duty of bringing their fetuses to term if they
become pregnant. Many of lifes activities involve taking risks,
such as with dangerous sports, risky business ventures, and
financial investments. In each of these cases we know the rules:
we take our chances with the hope of some benefit, but we
accept the consequences when things dont turn out as
planned. Sexual activity is no exception to this. A criticism of
this argument is that, even with risky activities that we engage
in, society does not abandon us to our misfortunes. Injured
athletes are hospitalized, bankruptcy laws assist us with failed
business ventures. In at least some circumstances, abortion
may be a reasonable safety net for women facing unwanted
pregnancies.

The Liberal Position

1. The womans right to bodily autonomy. Women have the right to
control their bodies, and this applies to the effects that pregnancy has
on them. This is the strongest argument from the liberal side and it
draws on a centuries-old conviction that people are entitled to a zone
of freedom, which includes decisions about what happens to our
bodies. A criticism of this argument is that all freedom has limits, and
we do not grant free reign to people over their bodies. Im not entitled
to cut out and sell my kidney on Ebay, just because its mine. More
significantly, I dont have free reign over my body when other people
may be adversely impacted by what I do. I cant, for example, wander
into someone elses house just because I feel like it. Most liberals
agree that at some stage in fetal development the fetus obtains
personhood or at least potential personhood. At that point the
interest of the fetus must be taken into account, and it might even
override the interests of the woman
 2. The psychological impact of unwanted pregnancies: Many pregnancies
can have long-term negative psychological impacts on women, and women
have a right to be protected from such effects. The negative psychological
impact of pregnancy from rape, for example, is especially great and many
conservatives recognize this as an extenuating circumstance that justifies
abortion. Defenders of abortion also note the sometimes devastating
economic consequences that an unwanted pregnancy can have on a woman
when she is without a family support system. Sometimes her entire
educational and career path may be permanently derailed. A criticism of
this argument is that it is hard to accurately gage the level of psychological
trauma that a woman might experience from an unwanted pregnancy,
particularly over the long term. A pregnant woman might overreact about
how having a baby might affect her, and theres no clear way to confirm or
disconfirm her worry in advance. Further, this opens the door to justifying
an abortion virtually anytime a woman expresses worries about the long
term effects of having a baby, whether those worries are real or not
 3. The social impact of unwanted pregnancies: Unwanted children can
have a negative impact on society as a whole, such as by increasing
crime and contributing to overpopulation. One study suggested that
crime in the United States dramatically decreased in the decades
following the legalization of abortion in the early 1970s. A criticism of this
argument is that similar reasoning could be used to justify rounding up
and killing socially undesirable people within our cities. For example, it is
reported that death squads in Rio de Janeiro have killed thousands of
vagrant children who roam the streets, harass its citizens, and harm the
tourist industry. Clearly such a social policy is unjustified for violating the
childrens rights to life, regardless of the harm they cause to society.
Similarly, even if unwanted pregnancies adversely affect society through
crime and overpopulation, this may not override a fetuss right to life if it
has moral personhood.

 4. The danger of self-induced abortions: women who are desperate to
terminate their pregnancies will often do so by unsafe means if no legal means
are available. This position is exemplified by an activist Dutch organization
called The Women on Waves Foundation, which created a floating abortion
clinic and sailed to countries like Ireland and Poland where abortions are
difficult to obtain. The foundation maintains that a woman dies every five
minutes somewhere in the world because of an illegal or unsafe abortion. Some
methods of self-induced abortion include attempting to remove the fetus with
an object such as a metal coat hanger or knitting needle, intentionally injuring
their abdomens to bring on a miscarriage, or taking high doses of drugs that
are rumored to bring on miscarriages. A criticism of this argument is that there
are other possible ways to reduce self-induced abortions besides legalizing all
abortions on demand. Better social services for pregnant women, increased
contraception use, and wider availability of the morning after pill might also
effectively address the problem.

 A Middle Ground
. First, even the liberal side recognizes that abortion should not be the first choice of
how to deal with an unwanted pregnancy, and, when possible, the numbers of
abortions should be reduced. Parenting classes and economic assistance might help
some women make the transition to motherhood.
Second, generally speaking, the more developed the fetus is, the more morally
controversial the abortion is. Abortions within the first few weeks of pregnancy,
before the embryo takes on shape and biological function, are less problematic. At
the other end of the timeline, fetuses within the third trimester are functionally
indistinguishable from newborns, which most liberals recognize.
- The real battleground is within the second trimester, while the fetus has human
form and biological function, but cannot survive outside the womb. In the interest of
political harmony, some conservatives might be willing to compromise on social
policies that permit early first trimester abortions, while some liberals might be
willing to compromise when it comes to policies that restrict abortions within the
second trimester.
Third, there is some middle ground when it comes to recognizing extenuating
circumstances that might justify an abortionthe most commonly recognized ones
being rape, incest, and risk to the womans life. Concerns about the psychological
wellbeing of the woman are more controversial, but even here a middle ground might
be found somewhere within the first trimester.
THE AUTHORS VIEW
He supports legal abortion but he is exceedingly uncomfortable
with the number of abortions performed in the country. 1.6
million abortions is a great amount of killing, too much in the
society that values human life. He said that it would be better
that if there is no abortion but still abortion is necessary and a
fact that most Americans have always recognized.
The also chooses to be in the middle ground of the abortion
debate which is that hes willing to accept the majority opinion,
judicial compromise and the possibility that no matter how
strong your moral convictions about ending the life of a fetus,
pro or con but always have the option of fighting for your own
beliefs and trying to convince others to adopt your own view of
the world.