Abortion Violates Human Right to Life - Essay Example

Abortion Violates Human Right to Life From the day when doctors learned to do abortion, debates on the justification of abortion primarily from an ethical and medical points of view do not stop. One can meet both ardent supporters and ardent opponents of abortion, and each of the sides provides rather reasonable arguments in favor of their point of view. Supporters of abortion can point out a variety of arguments, but their basic logic is presented by an idea that women have the right to dispose of their bodies. In addition, in some cases abortion may be the only possible method for solving serious problems, such as when the birth of a child can result in the death of his/her mother or the child was conceived through rape and its birth will have an extremely negative role on the rest of the woman’s life. Nevertheless, despite the fact that the supporters of abortion point out rather strong factors in favor of abortion, it is necessary to take into account the fact that it is primarily about human life that is recognized as priceless by all. The high incidence of abortions as the most simple solution to the problem has led to the fact that partly a childs life has lost its meaning and significance as a gift of God or a gift of nature (depending on how one perceives the birth). This problem did not exist until 1912 because before 1912, there were no laws against abortion (London). Despite the adoption of various laws on abortion, the problem is that abortion is still being applied even in cases when the birth of a child shall not be a threat to the physical or mental health of the mother and is justified from a practical point of view (too early pregnancy, physical complexity, condemned by the parents, etc.). Given all this, one can confidently assert that abortion is an extremely negative phenomenon and its evaluation should be primarily negative. Justification for abortion is only possible in some cases, namely, if the birth of a child will lead to the death of the mother or cause deep psychological trauma that can lead in tragic consequences in the woman’s life. As noted above, the proponents of abortion can point out many arguments in favor of their position. In particular, one of the first argument can appeal to the fact that nature itself provides the means for a natural abortion. Natural abortion can occur as a result of the inability of a woman to bear a child, her poor health, bad heredity, etc. Thus, even nature suggests the possibility of miscarriage. For this reason, one cannot blame the doctors that they offer women the opportunity to terminate the pregnancy, because nature itself, in some cases leads to abortion. Moreover, one should not forget that the unwanted child is a source of suffering for many of his/her parents, especially his/her mother. Children should bring joy to their parents, while the unwanted child will not make his/her parents happy, and as a consequence the child will not be able to get parental love, care and attention, as required for the normal development of the childs mind. In this context, abortion is regarded as a humane way to help both parents and their unwanted child get rid of suffering. In addition, as is known, having a baby entails a large amount of financial costs associated with the fact that the child should receive good medical care, food, and clothing (Condado). After a while the child should receive a good school and higher education, as well as have the opportunity for creative and professional development. In general, the birth and upbringing of children is rather an expensive task that can be performed by parents who have a sufficiently high and stable income. However, not all families can boast a stable and material income, while pregnancy may occur in women from poor families. Despite the wide variety of contraceptive methods, no woman in the world can have 100% guarantee that she will not get pregnant while financial burden associated with the birth and upbringing of a child is rather serious. In addition to financial issues, the advocates of abortion point to the fact that the state has no authority over the body. Equally with men, women have the right to dispose of their bodies. No state has the right to force a woman to have a child if she does not want to do that. Each person is an autonomous member of society, and this autonomy applies to an ability to control their own bodies, provided if it does not harm other members of society. A womans right to control her own body is one of the basic civil rights in any civilized society. Depriving a woman the right to dispose of her body and its fruits - and one might step on a shaky ground. If the state can force a woman to bear a child, maybe then it should make her undergo sterilization? In this context, abortion is a personal decision of a woman since she has the freedom of choice and the right to decide whether to keep the pregnancy or to interrupt it. The state has no right to put pressure on women in the issue of childbirth. As an independent member of society, a woman has the right to weigh the pros and cons of pregnancy and make independent decisions. Supporters of abortion also point to the fact that many of contraception can be considered a form of abortive practice. As well as abortion, they participate in the regulation of fertility and may prevent it. Consequently, those who oppose abortion should with no less zeal fight against the use of contraception. However, for some reasons, contraception is not banned, while abortion is constantly exposed to accusations by the opponents of abortion. If the opponents of abortion want to be consistent, they must also reject contraception, but they do not do it. No less strong is an argument in favor of abortion may rely on the fact that as long as the zygote is attached to their bodies women have the right to determine the fate of the zygote and decide whether they should deliver a child or not. In response to these arguments, it is possible to identify no least reasonable counterarguments appealing to both moral and medical aspects of human life. In contrast to the arguments of the supporters of abortion, most of which focus on personal interests of women, counter arguments take into account the fact that human life is priceless, regardless of whether it is presented in the form of a zygote or in a formed child. “A baby is often considered as a God’s gift, and it’s believed that every living being has a purpose behind his/her birth” (Ladock). In response to the first argument of the defenders of abortion, one can specify that the natural miscarriage might be caused by physiological reasons, not by moral reasons. The human body is subject to the laws of biology and if something goes wrong, it leads to certain consequences for the organism. If a woman has a poor health, eats bad food or has a genetic predisposition to a complicated pregnancy, it can cause a natural abortion. However, the fact that there is a natural abortion should not be an excuse for medical abortion, as the two phenomena have completely different reasons. The reasons for natural abortion have a physiological character, and therefore they do not depend on human will and choice. In contrast with natural abortion, medical abortion is associated with an individual moral decision that involves moral willingness of women to abortion. In addition, the view according to which a woman has the right to control her own body and decide whether she should interrupt the pregnancy is wrong. Life created in the womb of a woman has the right to its separate existence, regardless of the mother’s attitude to this situation. It is unclear why women feel that they have the right to decide the fate of an unborn child only for the simple reason that it is in the womans uterus. A childs life has value regardless of whether it is born or still in the womb. Ethical understanding of life as a value in itself does not allow one defending abortion because it contradicts the idea of life as a separate and distinct phenomenon. No one has the right to dispose of another human life. One should not forget that from a religious point of view, abortion is similar to playing God. Indeed, religion asserts that God is the only one who can give and take life. God gives life, therefore, only he has the right to deprive a person of life. A man comes into this world by the will of God, therefore, no one but God can decide the fate of the unborn child. Since human life begins at conception, abortion is similar to a cold-blooded murder: by making an abortion, a woman takes the life of an unborn child. Abortion violates the main idea of human morality, that is the idea of the inviolability of human life. Anyone who thinks that sex is primarily aimed at sexual pleasure and has nothing to do with the birth of children is deeply mistaken. Sex was created in order people could reproduce the human race. Reproduction is a priority of sexual intimacy between a man and a woman. For this reason, each sexual contact is associated with a certain risk: the possibility of conceiving a child. Anyone who wants to have an intimate relationship with his/her partner understands the risk. This means that a woman is to be ready for the consequences that may result from sexual contact with her partner. Knowledge of risk is not an excuse, but rather assumes responsibility. Any woman who has a sexual partner needs to understand her responsibilities as a woman. Defenders of abortion claim that abortion cannot be equated to the murder of an unborn child. They point to the fact that in most cases an abortion is applied in the first trimester, when the fetus cannot exist apart from the mother and function as a human being. Because the embryo is connected to the mother by the placenta and umbilical cord, its condition depends on the state of health of the mother, so it cannot be regarded as a human one. However, this argument loses its force when one takes into account the fact that a zygote or a fetus still have their individual DNA. As a negligible particle at the beginning of its development the embryo already has its unique qualities that differ it from another embryo. Finally, abortion should be considered in terms of its negative impact on womens health: “Many women experience many mental and physical effects after abortion. These include guilt, suicidal impulses, bleeding, and cervical, ovarian or liver cancer” (Condado). To sum up, in spite of the strong arguments in favor of abortion, counter- arguments might demonstrate more significant value to humanity. In fact, the opponents of abortion put emphasis on the importance of human life itself. No matter in what form it is presented - either in the form of an insignificant embryo or an adult. Life is valuable in itself and no pragmatic arguments can justify the murder of an unborn child. Every woman needs to understand the extent of her responsibility when she starts her sexual life. Responsibility implies an understanding that any sexual act can lead to conception. In addition, the effects of abortion can be much more serious than if the pregnancy is kept. Abortion make women face not only psychological but also physical problems with their health. Abortion can be justified in exceptional cases, if continuation of the pregnancy may lead to death of the woman. In other cases, abortion should be seen as a very negative phenomenon. Works Cited Condado, AnaKaren. “Abortion: Pros and Cons.” Houston Community College Southwest. 2011. Web. 8 Dec. 2014. Ladock, Jason. “Pros and Cons of Abortion.” Health Guidance. n.d. Web. 8 Dec. 2014. London, Kathleen. “The History of Birth Control.” Yale-New Haven Teachers Institute. n.d. Web. 8 Dec. 2014. Read More