Abortion: Should Abortion Be Legal?
Abortion: Should Abortion Be Legal? Throughout the history people have agreed and disagreed with many significant issues. And in the face of controversial arguments everyone has their very own opinion. Even though it is more likely that reasonable people might agree with a logical argument, there are some that are not very easy to convince because it contradicts their view points. Such is the case of the controversial issue of abortion. To understand better why people support abortion, first we have to comprehend what abortion is.
According to the National Right to Life, the term abortion refers to “any premature expulsion of a human fetus, whether naturally spontaneous, as in a miscarriage, or artificially induced, as in a surgical or chemical abortion. ” (www. nrlc. org, March 4, 2013). The definition is only useful to appreciate the real problem more precisely. In this paper I will focus on four key arguments that support pro-abortion; and I will present my opinion on each one to evaluate if the argument works or not through the usage of rhetorical thinking.
Finally, I will conclude by briefly stating my opinion regarding this issue after analyzing these arguments of the other side of the coin. One of the most talked about arguments that support abortion is “Abortion is a Fundamental Right. ” In Jan. 22, 1973 the US Supreme Court recognized “A woman’s right to choose abortion is a ‘fundamental right’” in the case Roe v. Wade. Lower federal courts had declared… denying a woman the right to decide whether to carry a pregnancy to term violated basic privacy and liberty interests contained in the Constitution.
The court concluded that Constitutional rights to privacy and liberty protected a woman’s right to terminate her pregnancy. ”(NAF. org, 5 March 2013). This is a strong argument because it is about abortion in the terms of its legal premises. The Supreme Court had to give the woman the reason because that is what is written in the Constitution. Besides, it is much easier to let a person win a case than changing the Constitution. Even though the arguments presented in court defended the woman very assuredly.
The final decision did not even mention any rights of the potential life that was forming or whatsoever, which is wrong because the woman can do anything that she wants with her body, but the fetus that I inside her is a totally distinct individual with different DNA and factions. For these reasons, this argument is a dilemma because while abortion gives the woman the right to make decisions on her body, it eliminates the legal rights of the unborn child. Another slightly more sensible pro-abortion argument is “Abortion in the Case of Pregnancy Due to Rape. According to the website Libertarians for Life, “Pregnancy due to rape acts against the woman’s liberty. In some sense, it’s a perpetuation of the aggression of the rapist. Regardless of the practical problems of pregnancy, rape is a major trauma, and the pregnancy complicates that still further. ” (Walter, 10 March 2013). This argument has a sense of pathos, in the way that it conveys a tragic experience with an undesired pregnancy. The author highlights how keeping the pregnancy could lead to a major psychological trauma.
A different but as well as sensible pro-abortion topic is the issue of “Abortion gives couples the option to choose not to birth babies with severe and life-threatening medical conditions. ” According to PROCON. org, “The X syndrome, the most common genetic form of mental retardation, affects about 1 in 4,000 males and 1 in 8,000 females. One in 800 babies have Down Syndrome, and one in 3,500 babies are born with Cystic Fibrosis. It is not right to sentence a child to life with an acute handicap. ” (PROCON. org, 5 March 2013) This argument conveys a lot of sense of pathos.
It is effective because the only people that can actually understand this deeply are the parents and family involved. However, I still strongly disagree with taking away an innocent human’s life. Besides, with so many technological advantages, it is sad to see that people don’t test themselves before deciding to have a baby and later find, during the pregnancy, that the baby that’s coming will have a mental or physical disadvantage. In addition, there is no proof that showing that Down Syndrome people feel ‘sentenced’ or in any disadvantage.
It is just the parents that see that the baby is different, not the baby himself. Therefore, this should also be considered a hasty generalization because the family and others see that the baby will be born with a disadvantage, they think that the baby will be miserable—but there’s no proof of that. Mary Gordon, a pro-choice woman author of A Moral Choice, gives her opinion and brings up a very important issue in favor of abortion: “Abortion transformed from a public into a private issue. She stated that “The RU-486 pill, which can induce abortion early on, exists. ” She added that women were going to obtain it whether or not it is “legally available. ” Her claim is that “If abortion can occur through chemical rather than physical means, in the privacy of one’s home, most people not directly involved will lose interest in it. As abortion is transformed from a public into a private issue, it will cease to be perceived as political; it will be called personal instead. ” (Gordon 190).
I think Gordon is right at some point—when she softens out the issue that by making a medical rather than a physical abortion it would then become more personal rather than political, some people might even change their view point, just like they did with the morning-after pill. However, I still believe that if there is already a morning-after pill, then there should be no reason for any woman to wait until confirming her pregnancy in order to take action. Why not taking the morning-after-pill after an unprotected intercourse to avoid any problem on the first place?
Time is very crucial in all aspects; women that wait to see if they are pregnant take a very high risk that can lead to either an unwanted pregnancy or worse—an abortion. On the other hand, I think she is trying to cover the sun with one finger. She is exposing a slippery slope fallacy by sort of saying that if people don’t see the problem, then there should be no problem at all, which isn’t true because not by covering the problem, it will make it disappear. Who knows maybe by doing abortions at home there could be more risks involved.
In conclusion, I believe that Abortion is a cruel, immature and unfair way to end a pregnancy. No one should end a pregnancy because it is their responsibility to use contraceptives on the first place. If a woman cannot afford to buy contraceptives, then she should control her instincts instead of getting pregnant to get rid of the unborn baby afterwards. Besides, medicine is so advanced nowadays which really makes abortion a despicable choice for an apathetic woman.
Even though, I do respect their opinions regarding their “freedom”, I do not think that they have much of consideration for the lives of their unborn babies. The reasons why a woman could end her pregnancy are endless. There are tons of excuses—some good others not much—that will always come into sight, but if we start taking wise choices from the beginning, then, we will be able to determine that who pays the consequences is not the person that made the damage but the innocent baby that the mom-to-be does not want to give the right to live.
Moreover, if abortion was made illegal again, then hundreds of lives would be saved every year. Besides, life is the most valuable gift anyone can have and possibly give. But like the saying goes: to each their own. Since abortion is legal, it is really up to the woman to take a wise and moral decision and to opt for different alternatives before abortion. Works Cited: Gordon, Mary. “Should Abortion Be Restricted? ” Taking Sides: Clashing Views on Political Issues. By George McKenna and Stanley Feingold. 18th ed. N. p. : McGraw-Hill Companies,Inc, 2012. 188-96. Print.
Taking Sides Ser. NAF, Staff. “National Abortion Federation: Pro-Choice and Proud. ” National Abortion Federation: Pro-Choice and Proud. N. p. , n. d. Web. 5 Mar. 2013. NRL, Staff. “Abortion: Some Medical Facts. ” Abortion: Some Medical Facts. National Right to Life, n. d. Web. 4 Mar. 2013. ProCon, Staff. “Abortion ProCon. org. ” Abortion ProCon. org. © 2013 a 501(c)(3) Nonprofit, 5 Feb. 2013. Web. 5 Mar. 2013. Walker, John. “Abortion in the Case of Pregnancy Due to Rape. ” Libertarians for Life – Abortion in the Case of Pregnancy Due to Rape. N. p. , 1998. Web. 10 Mar. 2013.
