At some point in your life, I’m pretty sure you’ve heard about the “pro-choice versus pro-life” abortion debate that has taken place across the world, and especially in the United States. The topic is still very relevant today. Every year, over 1.2 million women have abortions in the United States. Many people have different definitions on what abortion really is, and this makes the topic sensitive and hard for people to agree on.
“Abortion is the the deliberate termination of a human pregnancy, most often performed during the first 28 weeks of pregnancy” (Oxford Dictionary). “Abortion is defined as the termination of pregnancy by various methods, including medical surgery, before the fetus is able to sustain independent life” (US Legal, INC). “Abortion is the taking of life in a mother’s womb” (Legal Dictionary). “Abortion is the murder of a fetus” (Farlex Dictionary). These definitions are the reason why America is torn between whether abortion is morally and ethically acceptable. If murder is the taking of life, then is abortion murder since the fetus is terminated before life can be sustained? Lets start the debate.
.In 1973, during Roe versus Wade, the United States Supreme Court determined that the Constitution protects a woman ‘s decision whether or not to terminate her pregnancy. The Court ruled that during the first trimester of pregnancy a state cannot prevent any woman from obtaining an abortion from a licensed physician. During the second trimester, the state can regulate the abortion procedure only to protect the woman’s health. In the third trimester, the state may interfere to protect fetal life, but not at the expense of the woman’s life or health. There are many different reasons why women have abortions each y.
.or the greatest happiness of the greatest number” (Merriam-Webster Dictionary). Utilitarianism and abortion to me go hand in hand. This theory simply states that abortion would be considered moral if the pleasure exceeded the pain and provided the greatest happiness for those involved. Natural law is a system of right or justice held to be common to all humans and derived from nature rather than from the rules of society. In most countries, abortion is strictly outlawed and is illegal for all who live there.
Birth of a child is considered to be natural and many people think that the United States should adapt the same concept. Abortion will always be a controversial topic; a topic that most will never see eye-to-eye on. Whether you are pro-life or pro-choice, abortion is one of those topics where you have to think about your own moral values and decide what’s best.
