Abortion: Morally Permissible or Impermissible?
Abortion: Morally Permissible or Impermissible?
Abortion can be defined as a means of terminating a pregnancy by removing or expelling a fetus from the uterus before viability. Abortion has been, and will always be, a controversial issue in today’s society and in the future. People have always struggled to determine whether it is ethical to abort a fetus; morally permissible (acceptable) or morally impermissible (unacceptable). The polarizing views that are associated with abortion makes this topic extremely controversial. Some believe that abortion is morally impermissible and under any circumstances will it ever be acceptable, while others believe that under certain circumstances it is justifiable. Many philosophers have attempted to tackle the topic of abortion by providing their parameters on what makes it acceptable or unacceptable. The philosophical views of Marquis, Kass, and Purdy will be analyzed in order to highlight the polarizing views of this controversial topic. In addition, an analysis of my stance will be given based on circumstances provided by the philosophical views and also from biological development principles of science in general and some views mentioned by Thomson, which would make abortion morally permissible.
Don Marquis expresses that abortion is seriously immoral with very few exceptions to justify abortion being morally permissible. Marquis first develops his argument based on the wrongness of killing an adult human. According to Marquis, the loss of an adult human life is considered to be one of the greatest losses anyone can suffer. Marquis states that the loss of one’s life deprives them of the values that they possess at the time of death and also potential
future value. The loss of a life deprives an individual of experiences, activities, and overall enjoyment, which defines the overall quality of life. In full, it is the end all to what is and what would be in a person’s life. Marquis also touches on a
Abortion can be defined as a means of terminating a pregnancy by removing or expelling a fetus from the uterus before viability. Abortion has been, and will always be, a controversial issue in today’s society and in the future. People have always struggled to determine whether it is ethical to abort a fetus; morally permissible (acceptable) or morally impermissible (unacceptable). The polarizing views that are associated with abortion makes this topic extremely controversial. Some believe that abortion is morally impermissible and under any circumstances will it ever be acceptable, while others believe that under certain circumstances it is justifiable. Many philosophers have attempted to tackle the topic of abortion by providing their parameters on what makes it acceptable or unacceptable. The philosophical views of Marquis, Kass, and Purdy will be analyzed in order to highlight the polarizing views of this controversial topic. In addition, an analysis of my stance will be given based on circumstances provided by the philosophical views and also from biological development principles of science in general and some views mentioned by Thomson, which would make abortion morally permissible.
Don Marquis expresses that abortion is seriously immoral with very few exceptions to justify abortion being morally permissible. Marquis first develops his argument based on the wrongness of killing an adult human. According to Marquis, the loss of an adult human life is considered to be one of the greatest losses anyone can suffer. Marquis states that the loss of one’s life deprives them of the values that they possess at the time of death and also potential
future value. The loss of a life deprives an individual of experiences, activities, and overall enjoyment, which defines the overall quality of life. In full, it is the end all to what is and what would be in a person’s life. Marquis also touches on a