Abortion and The Principle of Ethics: Annotated Bibliography

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Whether for or against abortion, it remains to be “one of the most polarizing moral issues” (BBC, 2014) today. The disputable issue is encompassed by numerous inquiries such as: Is developing a fetus a being? Should the law allow abortions for rape? Abortion advocates and opponents usually define themselves as purely pro-choice, in that they support the right of a woman to make decisions about her body, or strictly pro-life, in that they agree that the fetus is a human life that should not be killed. Others are confused about the topic because they may have been taught one view by their faith. In my opinion, women have the right to have an abortion. It should be their freedom of choice. However, according to the philosopher John Locke, one must be pro-life. Locke claimed one must not do harm to one’s body but use reason to make the most of one’s life. Another philosopher named Immanuel Kant argued abortion would be immoral because it would be irrational to will that every pregnant woman would have one. I do not agree with Kant’s categorical imperative, however he does provide an interesting perspective on the issue of abortion.

Annotated Bibliography

BBC. (2014). Abortion: Introduction to the abortion debate. Retrieved from http://www.bbc.co.uk/ethics/abortion/legal/introduction_1.shtml

This source examines the rights and wrongs of purposely ending a pregnancy before childbirth. It discusses how women should have “free access to abortion in order to achieve full political, social, and economic equality with men” (BBC, 2014). Women should have full rights over their own body, including “the right to decide whether or not to carry a fetus to birth” (BBC, 2014). This sources provides an overview of opposing parties in abortion rights, as well as ties in the concept of ethics. It also helps provide answers to major questions involved in the matter of terminating a pregnancy.

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Jackson, E. (2018). Arguments about abortion: Personhood, morality and law. Modern Law Review, 81(4), 722–725. Retrieved from https://doi-org.chamberlainuniversity.idm.oclc.org/10.1111/1468-2230.12359

Jackson examines the controversy of abortion considering morality and law.

With an extended analysis of the moral and legal status of abortion, Jackson (2018) offers an alternative account to the reputable arguments of Ronald Dworkin and Judith Jarvis Thomson and instead brings the philosophical notion of ‘personhood’ to the foreground of this debate (para 1). Jackson discusses key features about when personhood begins and explore the most prominent issues in abortion ethics literature. This source is good because it sets out to address the question such as: must the law of abortion presume an answer to the question of when personhood begins?

Lina, P. (2012). Abortion and kant’s formula of humanity. Humana.mente: Journal of Philosophical Studies, 5(22), 145 – 166. Retrieved from https://chamberlain-on-worldcat-org.chamberlainuniversity.idm.oclc.org/oclc/7724380828

The author focuses on Kant’s Formula of Humanity of the Categorical Imperative and the prohibition against treating humanity merely as a means. Lina (2012) stated it has been argued by feminists that “forcing a woman to continue a pregnancy against her will is treating her as a mere means for sustaining the fetus” (p. 145). Therefore, women believe this constitutes an assault on one’s humanity, the capacity for rationally setting, and pursuing her own ends. However, a woman who aborts her fetus can be seen as treating a being which has the potential for humanity merely as a means for her own ends. The Kantian prohibition against treating humanity puts out some new challenges to Kant’s theory. This article provides new and useful insights on the much-discussed issue of the fetus’ status in the abortion debate.

Rohlf, M. (2016). Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Retrieved from https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/kant/

Immanuel Kant claims human understanding is the source of the general laws of nature that structure all our experience. The human reason gives itself the moral law, which is one’s basis for belief in God, freedom, and immortality. Kant holds the belief that “since we are rational beings, our actions always aim at some sort of end or goal, which our maxim expresses” (Rohlf, 2016, para 84). Although I do not agree with Kant’s stance on abortion, this source does a good job of presenting his ideas.

Siegel, N. S., & Siegel, R. B. (2013). Equality arguments for abortion rights. UCLA L. Rev. Disclosure, (60), 160-160.

This article presents some distinctive features of equality arguments for abortion rights. Both authors explain why there may be independent political significance in grounding abortion rights in equality values. Roe v. Wade grounds constitutional protections for women’s decision whether to end a pregnancy in the Due process Clauses. Some questions to think about when reading this excerpt include, “Does the state act consistently to protect potential life outside the abortion text?” or “Is the state selective in protecting potential life?” (Siegel & Siegel, 2013, p. 163). Equality arguments focus on “a woman’s autonomy to determine her life’s course, and thus enjoy equal citizenship stature” (Siegel, 2013, p. 170). The article is helpful because

Stammers, T. (2016). The ethics of pregnancy, abortion and childbirth: Exploring moral choices in childbearing. The New Bioethics: A Multidisciplinary Journal of Biotechnology and the Body, 22(3), 256-258.

In his article, Stammers, (2016) develops the deontological standpoints on abortion as wrongdoing for some reasons. Some deontologist persons will say that parents have the duty to

Yudanin, M. (2015). Can positive duties be derived from Kant’s categorical imperative?. Ethical Theory & Moral Practice, 18(3), 595-614.

In this article, Yudanin (2015) found out that Kant lays the basics of ethics on the Categorical Imperative, a law of morality that all humans have a duty to obey. His first formulation of this categorical imperative is the following: “Act only on that maxim whereby thou canst at the same time will that it should become a universal law.” Kant believed that all moral duties could be deduced from this categorical imperative. It is important to know that Kantian ethics is based solely on a formal, universal and a priori source. The moral law, according to Kant, must be formal; “All that remains of a law if one separates from it everything material, that is, every object of the will (as its determining ground), is the mere form of giving universal law” (p. 596). From this Kantian moral, abortion is rendered morally impermissible. However, one problem remains – that there could be circumstances that could derogate Kantian moral standards on abortion. I believe that the moral dilemma on abortion cannot be universal from Kant`s view because the decision should be personal or a matter of life or death of the mother.

(2016). Abortion and public health: Time for another look. The Linacre Quarterly, 83(1), 20-25.

The introduction of Roe v. Wade occurred four decades ago, yet the topic still remains very prominent among the public as well as the medical community and splitting almost evenly between “pro-life” and “pro-choice” positions. The decision legalized most induced abortions in the United States, “Allowing early abortion for any reason and extending to viable fetuses throughout pregnancy for reasons related to the mother’s physical or mental health,” but “Discussion about fundamental ethical aspects of abortion has been largely absent,” in the public health community (Abortion and public health, 2016). The lack of discussion puts into question the credibility and trust of the public health community. This becomes concerning because many of those who oppose abortion create their thoughts based on religious beliefs which have become highly entangled in our social and legal systems. Often times in our legal system there is a failure to recognize the fetus as a human life which leads to a dilemma as to whether that “human life” should be protected as a citizen of our country. This article is helpful because it looks at abortion as if it is against ethical beliefs in which we would abide by if someone was a living human being. For example, if a fetus is looked at as if it is in fact a human being, this article suggests that aborting the fetus would be against ethical standards, much the same way that a human killing another human would be considered unethical.

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