Part 1: Ethical Question

Is it ethical or unethical to have an abortion if the fetus is considered a human?

Part 2: Introduction

Abortion is and will always be a controversial issue among people in the United States of America. As for the women in population, the government and our community have consistently struggled with the idea of it all. Trying to balance between a women's right to privacy and to choose what is right for their own body while also trying to protect the rights of the unborn fetus. However, at the end of the day, it still should be up to us to make the choice of if we are ready or not. Due to this, there has been many laws created that govern under what circumstances women can proceed with an abortion (Roe v. Wade, 1973). Although many feels that they are unfortunately not enough laws that speak for the unborn fetus who everyone seems to forget can't speak for himself. There is still a great controversy that exists as to at what point life begins.  "According to the  government, we are not authorized to refer to 4 weeks embryo as a human being, as it is just a complex of cellular elements however, a newborn is considered a person by the proponents of the law " (Dabbagh, 2009). Due to this controversy there is a very big divide when it comes to determining if a fetus is a person or not and what rights the fetus has under the law.

Part 3: Explanation of the Ethical Theory

I came across an Article published by the European Journal of Social Sciences suggests that pregnancy means different things to different people. "Depending on the woman's age, where they live, their socioeconomic status, cultural background and the period of time that they are in, this may influence the termination of the pregnancy" (Solinger, 2005). In the world we live in, it is determined that the fetus has no rights as a person since it cannot breathe or interact by itself which has it good and bad stand points. But with, society also recognizes that the mother has full right and authority to abort the fetus. The reason being is the fetus relies on the mother and will be after given birth a human being. The journal states that the fetus must be able to survive on its own without the mother's assistance to be considered a person. Which we all know cannot happen without any kind of mothering being involved.

Some primary arguments for abortion could be based off the premises below:

Premise: 1 A fetus had no ability to interact with others as an individual and is not viable on its own.

Premise: 2 Fetuses are unable to sustain themselves outside of the mother’s womb.

Part 4: Application of the Ethical Theory

To gain knowledge a process all the sides with the pro-choice people. It does lend to the theory that abortion is okay if the person believes that fetus will not have any rights until birth. Per Warren (1973) "a fetus can only be considered a human being/person if there is consciousness, reasoning, self-motivated activity, the capacity to communicate and the presence of self-concepts and self-awareness" (Warren, 1973). So, to do this, it means you feel that life pretty much began outside of the womb. I understand people wanting to be pro-choice but what happens to the little baby that gets killed outside the womb at 2 months? Will this be any different? He is still able to protect himself or take care of himself either. But you will hurt a human in the womb at 3 months. If it is right, let it make sense. Otherwise it all is just a bunch of right and wrong with a bunch of I believes. If we look at the information of this premise and then we can presumably conclude that the information provided is true.

Part 5: Application of Unethical Theory

When we are looking at a disagreement of abortion, the whole main purpose of this theory is that it is never ethical to have an abortion.  The European Journal of Social Sciences bring two perspectives for Pro-Life to the forefront. The two perspectives would talk about moral and religious. Moral relativism dictates that people will disagree on the matter of abortion but that does not in any way mean that there is a lack of truth in this matter. For pro-life, killing is wrong and despites a person's cultural background, religion it is unacceptable. The religious aspect is solely based on the religious beliefs of the person and their church or how you feel based off your surroundings.

A primary argument for the application of unethical theory of abortion is:

Premise  1: The Unborn Subject.

Premise 2: Fetuses have all the same functions of a child who is born.

The debate exists on whether or not a fetus should have rights when it is unborn and should have moral status. There is a consistent divide between pro-life and pro­ choice people who cannot agree whether a fetus is a human being or not. The Prolife say "yes" they are considered Homo sapiens and the pro-choice feel that the unborn child is not valuable because the child in the womb lacks the ability to have awareness.  To advocate pro-life one must believe the truths that fetuses can feel pain, hunger and also cry in the womb. Studies show that there have been instances of ultrasounds showing the baby crying, moving and even sucking their thumbs. All of these truths strengthen the premise of the fetus being considered a human being.

Conclusion

After reading and researching this topic, I must say, I have learned a lot . My religious beliefs are very much aligned with the views of the pro-life movement. I am pro-life but I do not agree with abortion. I get things like raped can cause you to want to get rid of a fetus. But what if it meant so much more? I believe that killing a baby or a fetus is one in the same. I believe that life begins at conception and that the baby does move and feel inside the mother’s womb. When reviewing the research, the views that the fetus is not a human until it takes its first breath and is both does not sit well with me based on the research. I believe life starts at conception, no matter what! On the other hand, I do believe that the government should not be able to tell me what I can do with my body. I am the one that will be dealing with all the things that will change or affect my life. After looking at the evidence and reviewing all the scholarly articles, I cannot come to a definite conclusion as I feel that the evidence is not enough to support either side in the right way it should be supported.