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Why Abortion is Immoral - Don Marquis
In this essay, I will analyze and criticize an article which is entitled “Why Abortion is Immoral.” The article is written by Don Marquis and was published in the year 1989. The author has argued about the abortion debate, while mainly holding the position that abortion is immoral because of the fact that the fetus holds the position of a potential human being and it is not morally rights to take away that right of living. Marquis has included the point of view of the people who claim that there is nothing wrong in aborting a fetus and the mother-to-be has the right of making the decision according to her choice. The author has tried to present the arguments of both of the sides while trying to make it clear that killing of the fetus is immoral and cannot be justified in any way. The strengths and weakness of the arguments of Marquis will be highlighted in this paper through the utilization of analysis and critique.
One of the greatest strength of the point of view and article of Marquis is that the premises of his arguments are reasonable. An example of this is that Marquis has nullified the claim of the supports of abortion that the fetus is not human beings because it is not conscious and cannot feel the pain. The author has responded to it in the way that fetus is aware of its boundaries and has the sense of seeking protection by confining in its boundary, which is enough to remark its consciousness. The author has provided the good evidence of his key claims by mentioning that fetus has the potential future of a human being ahead of it and taking away that right cannot be justified in any manner (Marquis, 190).
The evidence provided by the author supports the conclusion in a conclusive manner. On the other hand, there is a little weakness in the argumentation of the author. The supporters of the abortion debate have made the argumentation that the fetus is not a human being but just the collection of few human cells, which is no different than the cancer cells in the human body. If killing the fetus is immoral because it has the potential future, then the cancer cells also have a potential future and should not be killed. However, cancer cells cannot be allowed the right to that future. So there should be no problem in taking the life of the fetus as well. The weakness of the argument of Marquis is that he has regarded this point as the ethical matter, however, he should have argued that cancel cells brought the destruction and demise of the human beings, therefore, it is right to get rid of them, however, fetus does not cause any harm to the human life, so it is not rights to get rid of it. In the case it is causing a threat to the life of mother-to-be, then it is a matter of concern (Marquis, 195).
Someone from the opposing view would find the arguments plausible because they are supported by logical claims and evidence. The background assumptions of the arguments are that the fetus is a potential human being which has the right to live and which should not be taken from it. The author has not presupposed things without evidence, which can cause concern to the people of the opposite point of view.
The author has presented his point of view in quite a logical manner, by providing the support and possible evidence of his claims. The strength of his claims is the logical presentation, while the only weakness of one of his claims is that he has tried to address it through the ethical perspective and not utilized the logical argumentation about it. However, the article has shed light on the immorality of abortion, while stressing the claims that it cannot be justified in any case.
Taking Life
The Embryo and Fetus - Peter Singer
In this essay, I will analyze and criticize the article “Taking Life, The Embryo and Fetus.” The article is written by “Peter Singer” and was published in the year 1993. The author has argued about the status of embryo or fetus. One of the greatest issues in the debate of abortion is the status of embryo and fetus, in order to determine that fetus and embryo are human beings or not. The author has shed light on the claims of the conservatives, as well as the liberal side about the status of the embryo and fetus in a detailed manner. The author has shared his stance on the matter while arguing about the fetus being sentient, the potential life of the fetus and the issue of infanticide. The author has presented his arguments in a logical manner, by providing the support of his claims. The strengths and weakness of the arguments of Singer will be highlighted in this paper through the utilization of analysis and critique.
The strength of the article of Singer is that the premise of his arguments is reasonable. The author has also used good evidence to support the key premises. One of the greatest strengths of his article is that he has presented the point of the view of the conservative and liberals on the matter in an effective manner. He has not let his personal views or biases to portray either side in a positive or negative manner. He has just shed light on their point of view in a neutral manner. On the other hand, he has shared his stance on the matter in the later section of his article (Singer, 170).
Singer has provided the evidence of his claims which conclusively support his claims. It is evident from the fact that he has argued that the fetus has a well-developed mind and nervous system, which proves its consciousness, although it is not self-consciousness. Moreover, the fetus has the sense of its boundaries and seeking protection, which is enough to claim that the fetus is a potential human being, having a future ahead of him, which should not be killed (Singer, 165).
Someone from the opposing views would consider the logic of the claims presented by Singer, and would not be able to refute them. They would find the premises plausible and the evidence of the claims would also appear compelling to them, as Singer has argued in his article that the fetus cannot be distinguished from a developed child, therefore, it is morally wrong to kill them. The mind of the fetus is well developed until the eighth week of conception, so it is a potential human being at that time, which should not be killed. The background assumption of the author is that fetus or embryo cannot be distinguished from a developed child, due to their continuous developments, which is the main reason it cannot be killed on the claims of a mere collection of human cells. The author has not presupposed things without evidence that someone from the opposing view would reject.
The article by Singer has a number of strengths, as the author has presented his claims in a logical manner. There are no weaknesses in the article of the author because he has shared the logical support and evidence of his claims, which does not leave any space for the opposing side to raise any conflict. He has perfectly shed light on the status of embryo and fetus by claiming them to be the potential human beings which have the right to live.
Works Cited
Marquis, Don. "Why abortion is immoral." The Journal of Philosophy 86.4 (1989): 183-202.
Singer, Peter. "Taking life: The embryo and the fetus." Practical Ethics (1993): 135-174.
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