Pro-Choice Term Paper

Open, View, and/or
Download this Document

Total Length: 1214 words ( 4 double-spaced pages)

Total Sources: 3

Page 1 of 4

Abortion is a contentious issue in modern society. Some individuals feel strongly about the issue from both poles of the spectrum regarding abortions. Many people feel abortions are equivalent to murder under any conditions. They typically believe that life begins at conception and thus taking life is a criminal act. However, the concept of "life" is rather ambiguous and under this definition many natural phenomenon could be considered murderous. For example, fresh fruit and vegetables are generally still technically alive when eaten because they are composed of living cells. Thus eating a salad could be considered a murder. If the argument is about consciousness or pain then these can also be determined. Pain has been identified as only possible after a fetus reaches twenty-six weeks old and consciousness is even more complex. Even infants outside of the womb lack that self-awareness that is typically associated with being conscious. When many of the standard objections to the practice of abortion being overcome by evidence and reason, the remaining objections often delve into the religious or moral realm and these objections further complicate the argument. This analysis will present some of the most common objections to abortion and argue against these with evidence and reason.

Life Begins at Conception

There is an assumption by many pro-life advocates that life begins at conception. When a sperm and egg combine they create a unique genetic identity that represents a code with billions of genetic combinations. Jerome Lejeune, the French geneticist who discovered the chromosome abnormality that causes Down syndrome, stated that (ProCon, N.d.)

"To accept the fact that after fertilization has taken place a new human has come into being is no longer a matter of taste or opinion... The human nature of the human being from conception to old age is not a metaphysical contention, it is plain experimental evidence.

Stuck Writing Your "Pro-Choice" Term Paper?

View All Our Example Pro-Choice Term Paper

Have A Custom Example Essay Written

"

If you accept the assumption that life begins at conception then it is easy to see why you could consider an abortion a murder. An abortion would basically represent the murder of a newly created human.

However, the same assumption is only applied selectively. In some cases, women who have difficulty getting pregnant often utilize the advances of science and medicine to improve their odds. Doctors can now combine sperm and eggs cells outside of the womb and inseminate the female artificially. They typically inject several fertilized eggs with the hopes that at least one will survive. If one fertilized egg survives then the woman can have a normal pregnancy in most cases. However, the fertilized eggs that do not survive would represent a form of murder to those who believe life begins at conception. The doctor and the aspiring parents could both be held responsible for colluding in the murder of countless living beings.

Another example arguing to the selectiveness of the assumption that human life begins at conception could be made with the natural and common occurrence of a miscarriage. If a woman was pregnant and was not in good health, whether from natural causes or self-inflicted ones, she could inadvertently commit murder under the assumption. The Mayo Clinic defines a miscarriage as (Mayo Clinic Staff, N.d.):

"Miscarriage is the spontaneous loss of a pregnancy before the 20th week. About 10 to 20% of known pregnancies end in miscarriage. But the actual number is probably much higher because many miscarriages occur so early in pregnancy that a woman doesn't even know she's pregnant."

Therefore, under the assumption….....

Show More ⇣

     Open the full completed essay and source list


OR

     Order a one-of-a-kind custom essay on this topic


sample essay writing service

Cite This Resource:

Latest APA Format (6th edition)

Copy Reference
"Pro-Choice" (2014, December 17) Retrieved April 23, 2024, from
https://www.aceyourpaper.com/essays/pro-choice-2154030

Latest MLA Format (8th edition)

Copy Reference
"Pro-Choice" 17 December 2014. Web.23 April. 2024. <
https://www.aceyourpaper.com/essays/pro-choice-2154030>

Latest Chicago Format (16th edition)

Copy Reference
"Pro-Choice", 17 December 2014, Accessed.23 April. 2024,
https://www.aceyourpaper.com/essays/pro-choice-2154030
   

Open, View, and/or
Download this Document
order custom essay example