Abortion The Rights of the Fetus, Mother and Father

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Abortion: The Rights of the Fetus, Mother and Father

Introduction

Increased societal dynamism has contributed significantly to an emergence of diverse social and ethical concerns that require utmost attention. While some seek to uphold the fundamental moral values and virtues that enhance societal cohesion and welfare, some contravene these vital social values and hence culminate in conflicts. One of the issues that have been compounded by various controversies since its introduction in the social sphere pertains to abortion. This refers to the act of removing a fetus from the body of its mother. This process compromises the life of the fetus and in most instances; it leads to its death. The arguments surrounding this issue essentially address the infringement upon the rights of the affected individuals. It is against this background that this paper intrinsically evaluates the abortion conception in light of the rights of the fetus, the mother and the father.

Certainly, the fetus in this respect is the most affected because of the fact that its life is terminated. From a legal point of view, Hull and Hoffer (2001) argue that the fetus does not have any rights to survive. This is because of the fact that the human rights to life are usually accorded at birth. Likewise, proponents of abortion employ the concept of personhood to argue in support of this practice. In this respect, McMahan (2002) asserts that the fetus does not have a right to live because it does not qualify to be a human person. Rather; it is a human being that has a potential to live. Qualities that are used as a benchmark to define human persons include autonomy, consciousness, salience and rationality. Notably, the fetus does not satisfy this criterion and therefore can not be accorded similar rights to life as other humans.

However, some philosophical studies indicate that fetuses need to be accorded a right to life once they develop their identity (Dean, 2004). Essentially, this occurs at the age of six months and hence it is posited that mothers conducting abortions after six months need to be convicted of murder. Religious studies on the other hand believe that life begins at conception. Abortion from this point of view is considered a violation of vital religious values and virtues that seek to protect and enhance human life. Persons practicing this are considered to have contravened the religious commandments that indicate that one should not kill.

From an ethical view point, abortion is an immoral act because of the act that it deprives a potential human a fundamental right to live. In this respect, it is argued that the fact that the fetuses have the ability to experience feelings of pain and suffering implies that hey have a right to live. The value of human life in such instances is compromised as the fetuses are deprived of a chance to participate actively in this. At this point, Dean (2004) maintains that from a utilitarian point of view, the practice is immoral because of the detrimental implications to the value of human life.

With respect to the rights of the mother, Toosley (2009) asserts that regardless of the fact that the fetus might have rights, it should be acknowledged that the mother also has fundamental rights to her body. She has the right to control her body and the sole decision with regard to whether to undertake abortion or not depends on her. It is indicated that the fetus does not have any right to live in the womb of the mother. Rather; it is only permitted to stay in this for nine months by the mother. This permission is perceived to be liable to revocation whenever the mother deems necessary.

At this point, it should be noted that rights can not be equated to permissions and neither can permissions be likened to rights. The permission given by the mother stems from the fact that it is her body and neither the government’s nor fetuses’. Proponents of abortion ascertain that according the fetus the right to life would undermine the right of the mother to her body. Notably, this constitutes infringement on the fundamental human rights of a mother who qualifies to be accorded personhood. Relative arguments in this regard cite the principle that ascertains that a right that contravenes another right that is established can not be considered to be a right. Rights in this respect are considered to be comprised of intricate and augmenting aspects that contribute significantly to an integrated whole. Hence any facet that conflicts this harmonic existence needs to be eliminated in order to enhance the functioning of the system.

However, Hull and Hoffer (2001) argues that the mother does not have a right to pursue murder regardless of the fact that she may have the right to control her body. In response, Tooley (2009) maintains that abortion does not constitute murder because the fetus does not qualify to be a person. In addition, he indicates that it is only a potential human who is not a part of the mother. Rights in this case have been cited to be accorded to human beings and not their relative tissues that can be easily separated from the former.

The rights of the father have also generated significant controversies in the recent past. Essentially, the father is considered an integral party in the life of the fetus. In this consideration, McMahan (2002) argues that from a legal point of view, a father who has accepted the respective pregnancy has a right to be involved all decisions made about the fetus. At this juncture, it is worth noting that he abortion debates and the intrinsic rights have entirely focused to the status of the woman and the fetus only.

Regardless of the fact that fathers have similar rights to the welfare of the fetus like the mother, abortions are in most cases given consent to by the mother. Dean (2004) considers this immoral because then, the father is denied an opportunity to be a parent with or without his knowledge. Further, the fact hat some women use deception or and force to make the fathers to accept abortion amounts to immorality.

Conclusion

Abortion is an emergent issue that has raised various controversies in both the legal, ethical and social sphere. These essentially pertain to the rights of the affected individuals; the father, mother and fetus. As it has come out from the study, proponents of the practice base their argument on the personhood conception. However, the religious and philosophical arguments agree that fetuses have a aright to life. The mother is central in this practice because she has been accorded a right to control her body. The father on the other hand is deprived of an opportunity to be a parent through force and deception. Generally, it can be concluded that the social, ethical and legal controversies surrounding this issue can be considered to be significant.

References

Dean, S. (2004). Essential Properties and the Right to Life: A Response to Lee. Bioethics, 18 (3), 263-87.

McMahan, J. (2002). The Ethics of Killing: Problems at the Margins of Life. Oxford: University Press.

Hull, H. & Hoffer, C. (2001). Roe V Wade: The Abortion Rights Controversy in American History. Kansas: University Press.

Tooley, M. (2009). Abortion: Three Perspectives. Oxford: University Press.