A general overview of different aspects of abortion including definitions, history, case studies and ‘pro-choice’ and ‘pro life’ arguments.
This paper discusses abortion, showing all the key themes and issues currently affecting it. The introduction defines terms necessary for the paper such as “abortion”, “human life” and “human person” and gives a history of abortion from ancient until modern times. It then puts forward the arguments of “pro-life” and “pro-choice”, focusing on two unusual case studies that turn upside-down commonly held views on when abortion is or is not appropriate – one supporting abortion (a mother who simply did not want a child at her life stage) and another opposing abortion (a woman who was born after her mother was raped). It attempts to show through these examples that it is possible to eloquently argue either for or against abortion but that ultimately it is impossible to determine whether abortion is “right” or “wrong” and that each case needs to be judged on its individual merits.
“The Catholic Church also has inconsistencies regarding intra-uterine devices (IUD’s) and its funeral and burial services. Most people believe that IUD’s interfere with the implantation of fertilized ovum in the uterine wall. If this is correct, it means that IUD’s terminate development after conception and therefore after a human person has been formed. This means that, technically, approximately 43% of American women have had an abortion. There have also been burial services and funerals held by the Roman Catholic Church for aborted fetuses. However, this has not generally been the case as fetuses have not been considered full persons by the Church to the extent of being worthy of a formal requiem mass or formal burial service.”