Philosophical Ethics Surrounding Abortion
Abortion refers to fetal termination among women, regardless of the age of the pregnancy. Women do end the life inside their womb for various reasons. In philosophy, abortion is regarded as an interesting issue of discussion especially when considering its ethical aspects. Both sides of arguments about abortion hold onto adherent opposing opinions and convictions that seem appealing due to their level of confidence. However, with the certainty regarding the moral aspects of abortion, it is thought to be a derivative issue in which the wrong or right side depends on a variety of factors. Some of the factors include killing morality, fetal nature, and the facts surrounding pregnancy. This means that abortion is essential in providing instructive examples of the structure of people’s moral thinking. This paper reviews the philosophical ethics surrounding abortion by reviewing claims from reputable philosophers.
Last year, a considerable number of states banned aborting a few weeks fetus. Alabama banned abortion regardless of the stage of pregnancy unless it is done under the exceptions of rape or incest. Missouri passed a bill that banned abortion as early as 8 weeks into pregnancy regardless of rape or incest. The Missouri and Alabama bill indicates how legislatures are striving to keep restrictions on abortion. Even with the moves to ban abortion, citizens have a variety of questions regarding the entire abortion procedure. Many of the Americans wonder if abortion is legal, it is still rampant and how the laws and regulations stipulated towards banning abortion affect the patients across the state and the country in general. Today, the rate of fatal termination in America has declined significantly between 2006 and 2015. The decline is associated with the current strict laws and regulations imposed against abortion as well as easy accessibility to contraceptives. Without contraceptives, women tend to opt for abortion regardless of whether it is legal or not and the consequences thereof. Therefore, availing contraceptives is ideal in reducing the rate of fetal termination among women.
According to the Kantian approach to abortion, Lara Dennis’s argument explores more about the animality and agency involved in abortion. According to Dennis (2008), abortion revolves around the questions of moral status and the rights of the mother of the unborn child to take control of her body. This goes along with Kantian ethics and the universalization of abortion. According to Kant’s thoughts, a woman has the fundamental needs that are morally essential for self-respect because women are rational beings. Kant also states that human beings have the nature of animals (Denis, 2008). From the Doctrine of Nature in the Metaphysics of Morals by Kant, one can easily understand her virtuous agency as well as Kant’s self-awareness. Kant regards virtues as humanity’s moral strength and the willingness to accomplish their duties. Kantian virtue depicts how human beings have the supreme commitment to attain morality through a cultivated ability to achieve and fulfill the duties required. Thus, regarding abortion, Kantian ethics implies that fetal abortion is morally significant. The moral significance of a fetus is seen in the loved by the mother and the family. Therefore, humans have personal duties and also required to protect and guard others through the feeling like being kind, loving, and sympathetic as well as a concern about their offspring.
Kant’s argument is the reason why some women find themselves attached to the fetus even if it is unwanted. This is due to the acts of sympathy and love depicted by the Kantian view of virtues since the fetus is attached in the mother’s womb and she will have a greater awareness of what is developing inside her uterus. Mothers tend to hear the heartbeat of their children, their movements in the belly, and sometimes, the ultrasound, and hence, find it difficult to abort the fetus regardless of the circumstances (Denis, 2008). Kant says that even though some women do not love or attach to the fetus, they perceive abortion as an anti-moral towards her useful sentiments. Regardless of how the pregnancy came about, Kant claims that each human agent has a predisposition towards sympathy and love and any actions against such predispositions can erode them while actions that accords to the predispositions will cultivate and protect them. Kant also says that it is unwarranted for women who assume that their lack of attachment to the fetus permits them the audacity to terminate it. Kant argues such women to understand that as the fetus grows in the body, the predisposition becomes stronger towards love, sympathy as well attachment; however, terminating the pregnancy will weaken the predispositions thereof. That is to imply that Kant regards abortion as an antagonistic action against a woman’s moral health that increases through fetal development, making it an issue to Kantian agents.
According to Kate Greasley’s Arguments about abortion: Personhood, morality, and law article, Alabama State voted against legalizing abortion due to the risks associated with the act. Kate states that mothers to the unborn children stand the potential risk during the procedure. The moral argument surrounding the argument is that universal equality of humanity starts at conception. Therefore, even though proponents of abortion argue that the unborn child should be ignored, medical science recognizes the unborn child as a human being at utero development. Kate further states that abortion can be equated to other crimes against humanity such as the Holocaust atrocities, Cambodian killings, and the Stalin gulags. Kate further states that when thinking about the morality of human life, it is crucial to consider the full-blooded moral aspects (Greasley, 2017). Therefore, understanding the morality of the embryo and the fetus is essential in understanding the moral status and personhood of the unborn child. First, there is a question regarding the moral status conditions. For philosophers with a strong moral status, the moral status question is complex and challenging. No one should be subjected to death unless the reason is strong and concrete or weighty. Kate tries to help us understand why we have the rights of moral status; it is because we belong to a certain homosapiens group or the unborn children are as a result of some capacities of development that are not essential possessions during the biological human life.
That is to imply that human beings have a complete genetic coding based on moral rights, therefore, a human zygote, regardless of the number of cells it has, is morally essential like that of a child with ten years. It might be difficult to accept such an idea since it suggests that even a fetus, 1 day of gestation period is worth living. On another hand of the question and thoughts claimed by Kate, if we can perceive moral status and rights to life as dependent on various development capacities, then one should wonder about the moral standing of those children born at an earlier stage or those with cognitive disabilities. According to egalitarian philosophical perspectives, born humans (those children born earlier than their required gestation period), bear equal rights but do not support the developmental approach to define moral status. Hence, Kate’s drawing line stands between the idea of the need to protect a gestated fetus at 24 weeks and not the fetus at 23.5 weeks. Thus that implies that a neonate should be protected more than a fetus of the same age of gestation (Greasley, 2017).
According to the theory of Ethics of Care, caring for others and human life is the ultimate and valued act in every society. The state and the law require that the citizens of a given country are sustained and protected especially the basics. Care is central in the existence of humanity and hence, that is to imply that the core objective if the ethics of care is that relationships should be promoted. In relationships, care, and mutual flourishment, and hence, terminating such relationships has consequences (Held, 2006). Abortion can be termed as the opposite of the ethics of care since it seeks to terminate the relationship between a mother and the growing fetus regardless of its stage of growth.
Objections
Regarding the Kantian approach about abortion, one can object to the approach from three different assumptions. First, it can be assumed that Kant’s perception of abortion focuses on the effects it has on the emotional capabilities of women. For instance, one might think that after a woman has terminated the one pregnancy, the act might impair her ability to love other fetuses. But this seems like an exaggeration to Kantian approach. Abortion does not necessarily cause severe damages to a woman’s future offspring or other people. I think numerous abortions are what can impair the bond and connection between the mother and another fetus. Therefore, one can say that abortion can encourage and contribute to the erosion of the animality and moral utility of humans. Besides, a Kantian agent cannot thwart feelings that are morally useful in an attempt to promote insignificant feelings. It should also be understood that when a virtuous conceives, she will do all she can to while making the decision about it, keeping in mind the predisposing aspects. Another objection regarding abortion is the aspect of women thinks about their virtues, respects, and their animal nature instead of the fetus or the child thereof. Furthermore, Kantian’s account on abortion does not recognize the fetus as a rational human being and its significance. One respects rational nature from a general perspective and not in persons as indicated above. Therefore, the formula of humanity is vital in interpreting the fetal moral considerations by virtue of status.
In conclusion, abortion has been an issue surrounded by various philosophical interpretations as well as ethical considerations. The wrong and the right side of opinions surrounding abortion depends on various factors. S argued by reputable philosophers such as Kant, Kate, and theories like the ethics of care, fetal termination stems from the moral status of individuals and the rational aspect or personhood of the fetus. Through thoughts and perceptions of humanity and animal nature in humans, women should adhere to their predisposition regardless of the circumstances.
References
Denis, L. (2008). Animality and agency: A Kantian approach to abortion. Philosophy and Phenomenological Research, 76(1), 117-137.
Greasley, K. (2017). Arguments about abortion: Personhood, morality, and law. Oxford University Press.
Held, V. (2006). The ethics of care: Personal, political, and global. Oxford University Press on Demand.