Moral Frames Analytical Analysis

Moral Frames & 2012 Election issues
How is it that intelligent, rational, well meaning adults can look at the same set of facts on an issue and come to entirely different conclusions? The insight that George Lakoff had on this question in his book Moral Politics was that liberals and conservatives are viewing those facts through a moral framework where the facts are filtered and understood beyond rational thought. He identifies two main frameworks, related to parenting styles, for understanding the conservative / liberal divide. Strict Father Morality emphasizes authority, self-discipline, and competition. Nurturant Parent Morality emphasizes respect, empathy, and cooperation. The frameworks are extended from the family to the nation,
His personal experience and private conclusions on when life begins have informed his public policy thinking on the issue. He mentioned that his Catholic faith, “informs me about how to take care of the vulnerable, about how to make sure that people have a chance in life” (Ryan - VP Debate). The focus of his care for the vulnerable is the potential human life which cannot defend itself and cannot take responsibility for its actions. He opposes abortion because embryonic human life is sacred and deserves a chance at survival. Helping him come to that conclusion Ryan recalls going to the clinic with his pregnant wife. “For our seven-week ultrasound for our firstborn child, and we saw that heartbeat. Our little baby was in the shape of a bean, and to this day, we have nicknamed our firstborn child, Liza, ‘Bean’” (Ryan - VP Debate). Ryan personalizes his seven week old embryo, he saw it moving in the ultrasound, it had a heartbeat, and they gave it a nickname characteristic of its form. Sharing the experience of seeing his child in the ultrasound frames how Ryan, and the listener, understand the abortion debate. Even at seven weeks old the embryo had a sacred personality that carries over into the child they have today. Aborting a fetus at seven weeks old would be killing the child that could have been. Talking about the importance of terminology in setting the debate Lakoff says, “Opponents of abortion use the word baby to refer to the cluster of cells, the embryo, and the fetus alike. The very choice of the word baby imposes the idea of an independently existing human being. Whereas cluster of cells, embryo, and fetus keep discussion in the medical domain” (Lakoff 264). Talking about the policy implications of his belief on when life begins Ryan says, “If you believe that life begins at conception, that doesn 't change the definition of life. That 's a principle. The policy of a