Under what conditions is abortion morally acceptable Essay

Under what conditions is abortion morally acceptable - Essay Example Under what conditions is abortion morally acceptable? On the other extreme, in the more liberal states region, there is the danger of abuse of the right to abortion by reckless, indulgent teenagers. This essay will argue that abortion must be exercised only under exceptional circumstances. Four key readings related to the topic are perused for constructing arguments. Dan Marquis’ essay â€Å"Why Abortion is Immoral† clearly suggests that the author looks cannot see any genuine moral grounds for permitting abortion. A central part of his essay is the idea of ‘potentiality’ of a developing fetus. Drawing analogy from the criminal justice system, he explains how the same moral justifications for condemning killing an adult should also apply for the fetus (irrespective of the period of gestation). This is so, Marquis argues, as terminating a fetus deprives it of all potential experience of life and happiness – the same rationale applied for sentencing those committing homicide. After all, if we merely believe, but do not understand, why killing adult human beings as ourselves is wrong, how could we conceivably show that abortion is either immoral or permissible† (Marquis, p.400) Marquis’ point is well taken, especially since he does not dogmatically cling to all the demands of the conservative camp. Marquis has no qualms about use of contraceptives, as it stands outside the concern with ‘killing’. Use of contraceptives is a preemptive act and does not interfere with the future (with all its potentialities) of a developing fetus. In contrast, what makes ‘killing’ wrong â€Å"is its effect on the victim. The loss of one’s life is one of the greatest losses one can suffer. The loss of one’s life deprives one of all the experiences, activities, projects, and enjoyments that would otherwise have constituted one’s future†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Marquis, p.401) This is a meritorious argument and unless convincing ly proved false, it should serve as a primary clause for forbidding abortions. Hence, Marquis makes a persuasive case for abstaining from abortion. Mary Anne Warren’s article â€Å"On the Moral and Legal Status of Abortion† attempts to counter some of the claims made by Dan Marquis. She criticizes the ‘genetic code argument’, which states that since the genetic code or (DNA) of a fetus is the same as a fully formed human, the moral considerations in dealing with its termination will have be the same as those applied to adults. Though this argument is accurate from a biological viewpoint, it is too esoteric and removed from immediate factors governing an abortion decision. Warren then gives a brief treatise on the nature of personhood, an understanding of which is central to the topic of abortion. She argues that a fetus never acquires mature characteristics that would lead it to be thought of as a person in the legal and moral sense. To this point I would add that a fetus does not have the training, experience and mental development to conceive of its own future, thereby weakening claims of potential loss. According to Warren, the traits that are central to the concept of personhood (and by extension the applicability of moral considerations) are the following: â€Å"consciousness, reasoning, self-motivated activity, the capacity to communicate, the presence of