Week 7 Assignment: Course Project Milestone – Final Paper
Required Resources
• Read/ Textbook: Chapter 12
• Lesson
• Minimum of 5 scholarly sources (This includes the sources from the annotated bibliography. Additional sources may be included as appropriate.)
Instructions
Return to the topic you chose in the week three assignment. Articulate a specific dilemma in a situation faced by a particular person based on that topic. The situation can be real or fictional.
• Summarize the dilemma.
• Define any needed key terms associated with the dilemma.
• Analyze the conflicts or controversies involved in the dilemma.
Revise and rewrite based on any feedback you received in your previous draft (week three). Reference and discuss any professional code of ethics relevant to your topic such as the AMA code for doctors, the ANA code for nurses, etc. State whether and how your chosen topic involves any conflicts between professional and familial duties or conflicts between loyalty to self and loyalty to a community or nation.
What in your view is the most moral thing for that person to do in that dilemma? Why is that the most moral thing? Use moral values and logical reasoning to justify your answer
Next, apply the following:
• Aristotle’s Golden Mean to the dilemma
• Utilitarianism to the dilemma
• Natural Law ethics to the dilemma
Which of those three theories works best ethically speaking? Why that one?
Why do the other two not work or not work as well?
Is it the same as what you said is the most moral thing earlier? Why or why not?
Use the 5 articles from your annotated bibliography to support your answers. (Additional academic scholarly research from the past 5 years can be included as well.)
Include a reference page at the end of your paper in APA format that includes your bibliography with the annotations removed and any other sources used in your final paper.
Writing Requirements (APA format)
• Length: 4-5 pages (not including title page or references page)
• 1-inch margins
• Double spaced
• 12-point Times New Roman font
• Title page
• References page (minimum of 5 scholarly sources)
Course : ETHC445N
Topic : Abortion
Week 3
An abortion entails a process where an unborn baby is removed before full development, hence termination of life and the pregnancy. Is such action right or wrong? Well, it all depends on the aspects surrounding the reasons behind the act. According to society and personal reasons, there are different moral perceptions of abortions and it’s rightness or wrongness. First moral reason against abortion bit that the fetus is a growing living human being and should not be killed. This reason can be right depending on the different views of different people in the situation.
Another moral reasoning against abortion is that it is inhumane to kill a growing fetus without giving it a chance to live. This moral reason views the fetus as a human being or a human being. Hence, it reasons out that the child should be given a chance to live, breathe and make something out of their lives. Most decisions concerning abortion are because of financial or underage pregnancy where the parents are undecided on the course of action to take how to raise and nurture a baby; hence go for the abortion option.
Similar to the moral reasons against it, there are also moral reasons that support the practice. One moral reasoning is that women should not be seen only as vessels but also as humans. Hence, they should have individual choices on whether to be mothers or live without a child. An instance of this is a raped girl who got pregnant after being violated. Does she have a right to choose whether to get an abortion or raise a child who is the reminder of the events? Based on such circumstances, the mother decides to make the moral choice.
Another moral reasoning that supports the act is that a fetus has no moral status. Hence, it is not morally wrong to terminate the life of something without a moral status. Based on this reasoning, similar to other species and animals. Moral stature plays a crucial role in determining whether it is right to kill a fetus or not. If we consider a fetus as a no moral being, then it can be supportive of killing or sustaining the life of a fetus. The moral decision concerning abortion is based on people’s reasons behind the right and wrong of abortion.
Ethical Egoism
The aspects behind ethical egoism state that one should act only by self-interest and not care about the impact the actions have on others and the community. Through ethical Egoism, abortion is the mother’s choice of action and should be decided without concern for any view, advice, opinion, or impact. The abortion based on ethical Egoism also ignores community rules and guidelines and is acted upon based on her choice. For the woman has a choice on how to treat her baby and body, or the world makes her choices.
The ethical argument surrounding ethical Egoism is the conviction for committing murder. Most women who decide to abort decide based on personal reasons and perceptions and not community views. Is abortion a crime of committing murder (Girn, R. 2006)? Well, this is what raises the bar on the right and wrong of abortion. Ethical Egoism supports such actions as the mother is seen as a criminal for the decision of not being a mother. Ethical Egoism on abortion gives a woman a voice and choice to make the decision of what is right and wrong based on her opinion.
Social Contract Ethicist
A social contract ethicist would completely not agree with the abortion act. This is because social contract ethicists believe that people live in a society and communities based on rules and guidelines to set the political and ethical standards of behavior. Today, almost all governments worldwide have set rules against abortion, with some even setting a jail sentence or
punishment in the even one is associated with ( Ethics Unwrapped, 2021). Based on living standards and practices on laws set by society, abortion is a crime and considered murder and social supports that the fetus has a right to live.
A social contract ethicist would also say that society’s rules hold the principles and practices of behavior. They would justify their position by siding with society’s rules and policies. The topic of abortion has been discussed worldwide by people across nations and states, regions, and ethnic groups; hence the topic has a collision between personal and national perceptions of the act. According to my personal reason, the best cause of action is that the unanimous decision is based on parents’ choices on whether to keep or terminate the pregnancy. If this decision is taken from them, then equal support should be given to care and raise the child to be born.
The AMA Code of ethics opinion 4.2.7 does not prohit a physician from conducting an abortion according to medical practice and circumstances. The ANA code of nurses states that a nurse has a right not to participate in a case based on ethical ground, and hence the decision lies with the nurse on whether to be a party to abortion.
Reference
Ethics Unwrapped, (2021) Social Contract Theory. Retrieved from https://ethicsunwrapped.utexas.edu/glossary/social-contract-theory
Jones, K., & Chaloner, C. (2007). Ethics of abortion: the arguments for and against. Nursing Standard, 21(37), 45+. https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A164948786/AONE?u=anon~64b1c833&sid=googleScholar&xid=10da9bdb
Girn, R. (2006) Defending the Selfish Choice: Abortion Rights and the Morality of Egoism. Retrieved from https://www.google.com/amp/s/theundercurrent.org/defending-the-selfish-choice-abortion-rights-and-the-morality-of-egoism/amp/
Topic: Annotated Bibliography
Week 5
Annotated Bibliography
Jones, K., & Chaloner, C. (2007). Ethics of abortion: the arguments for and against. Nursing Standard, 21(37), 45+. Retrieved from https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A164948786/AONE?u=anon~64b1c833&sid=googleScholar&xid=10da9bdb
In the article, Jones and Chaloner examine the various ethical issues that have been raised regarding the practice of abortion. The two authors explain that countries such as England, Scotland, and Wales have “legalized abortion” in contemporary life, and they view it as a normal affair. (pg. 21) The various legislatures in the respective countries have tabled various acts to legalize abortion in the respective countries.
Both Jones and Chaloner have raised issues concerning the government acts to legalize abortion. They raise concerns about the big controversies of whether abortion is ethical or unethical; hence tried to evaluate some of the critical issues concerning abortion to question the ethical merits of abortion. Despite fostering many social problems in society, abortion can have life-threatening effects on the individual. Some of the negative health impacts of abortion include; excessive bleeding, massive deformation of the individual’s uterus, irregular cramping, and even vomiting. On the other hand, abortion can cause increased rates of immorality in society. Therefore, the above-named concerns raise questions regarding the legalization of abortion in countries such as England, Scotland, and Wales.
I’m afraid I have to disagree with the idea that countries need to legalize abortion. The affected countries argue that legalizing abortion can greatly help reduce the levels of criminal activities in a country. They continue to argue that the levels of crime rates in countries where abortion has been legalized have decreased by fifty percent in the last five years. The levels of violence in the respective countries have reduced by approximately forty-five percent. Moreover, abortion raises can bring health dangers to the victims and may lead to death if it is conducted in an unprotected and unsafe manner. However, my view provides that no problem can be eliminated using another problem. Abortion itself is unethical and is judged to be killing a living being according to the various principles of ethics. It is through this that my view faces abortion to be unacceptable in society and a matter that should not be tolerated in any given community.
The article has played a critical role in educating about abortion and educating the various individuals on legalizing abortion. Moreover, it has greatly improved my understanding of the various ethical issues that are around abortion despite it being accepted legally. It is therefore important in helping grow the knowledge around abortion.
Girn, R. (2006) Defending the Selfish Choice: Abortion Rights and the Morality of Egoism. Retrieved from https://www.google.com/amp/s/theundercurrent.org/defending-the-selfish-choice-abortion-rights-and-the-morality-of-egoism/amp/
The article (Girn, 2006) argues that an individual is supposed to do what they find to be their self-interest and should never be worried about what the community and the members of the community say about them. Girn argues that “ethical egoism” women who hold pregnancies should are the ones with the soul idea of either aborting or keeping the pregnancy. (Pg. 43) The actions should not follow any intimidation or fears of what other community members will say about the abortion.
The article has raised many controversies regarding the arguments of (Girn 2006) about ethical egoism. Some of the controversies raised concern the ethical matters that dictate that abortion is not an acceptable practice in society. In some circumstances, abortion is acceptable, especially in hospital settings whereby a pregnancy exposes a pregnant woman to health hazards that may even cause death. However, other abortions are morally inappropriate and should be entertained in society.
I can’t entirely agree with the article, whereby (Girn 2006) states that pregnant have the right to keep or abort. First of all, I find abortion to be an ungodly practice as it involves killing human life. Secondly, the current advancements in technology have enabled scientists to conduct research, thus being able to come up with various family planning techniques. It is out of ignorance that many individuals end up getting unwanted and unplanned pregnancies which leads to abortion. In my view, abortion can be one of the main ways that people get rid of the effects of their ignorance.
The article is very important to individuals to carry out a close examination of various incidences of abortion. It provides knowledge on some of the reasons why the levels of abortion in the world are increasing over the years. Ethical egoism allocates too much power to the pregnant woman. If such directions were to be undertaken, victims could be exposed to devastating side effects, and it may foster a challenge to the health care systems in times of outbreaks such as currently, whereby the world is in the middle of the Corona pandemic.
Ethics Unwrapped, (2021) Social Contract Theory. Retrieved from https://ethicsunwrapped.utexas.edu/glossary/social-contract-theory
In the article (Ethics Unwrapped, 2021), “social contract theory” argues that people live in a world with many rules and regulations aimed at regulating their various behaviors. (pg. 32) Therefore, the theory greatly disagrees with the abortion act since the abortion rules and regulations of many countries do not support abortion. However, it does not disagree with the fact various health practitioners can carry out Many countries have set laws which view the act of abortion as a major crime which may lead to imprisonment or even punishments since the act involves terminating human life and everyone, including the fetus have the right to live.
The social contract theory also has problems. Social contracts are mostly unfair and often lead to inequity. It gives too much power to the government in terms of making laws such as abortion laws to protect its people in the entire country. In a case where the members of the society accept the social contract, some of them lack the capability of understanding what role they should play in the contract.
I greatly agree with (Ethics unwrapped, 2021) concerning the social contract theory. The primary reason I agree with social contract theory, according to Ethics unwrapped, is that it ensures to protect the people of a particular nation from the fetus stage to the elite old individuals. It is achieved through the legitimation of the government. It is, therefore, a crucial tool in the topic of abortion.
The article is so important to individuals who would wish to carry out research regarding abortion. It provides a conceptual framework and a literature review through which any other research that may involve abortion can use.
Svenaeus, F. (2018). Phenomenology of pregnancy and ethics of abortion. Medicine, Health Care Philosophy 21(1), 77-87.
In the article, (Svenaeus ,2018) carries out an investigation on how various phenomena can influence how abortion is perceived i.e., right or wrong. Irenaeus argues that the issue of pregnancy and abortion should be discussed in a broader perspective. Some circumstances lead to abortion which is not viewed as morally inappropriate. In the medical field, some circumstances, to be particular, Svenaeus argues that technological advancements help to detect defects which leads to earlier detection of abnormalities and defects which greatly favor abortion.
The article raises a lot of concerns as it encourages safe abortion in a hospital, despite leading to loss of life. I greatly disagree with this article, because in my own view, I think abortion should be conducted whenever there is the risk of losing both the mother and the child due to complications or other health-related problems. Therefore, I greatly disagree with the fact that individuals should practice abortion to get rid of babies with complications. The article is very important as it provides additional knowledge which can be used in future researches.
Hendricks, P. (2019). Even if the fetus is not a person, abortion is Immoral: the impairment argument. Bioethics, 33(2), 245-253
The article (Hendricks, 2019) argues that “abortion” cannot be morally accepted despite the fact that the fetus is not actually a real person. (pg. 30) The author greatly criticizes the various acts such as giving the fetus “fetal alcohol distress,” and as a result, abortion is immoral. Hendricks argues that abortion entails the loss of life, and society cannot accept killing.
The article has raised a lot of controversies. Hendricks states that the fetus is not a human being but killing them is not acceptable. However, in a real sense, the killing can never happen if it does not involve living creatures. The issue has raised concerns about the argument by Hendricks. However, the author concludes that people who participate in activities such as abortion are not only committing murder but also suffering from seriously impaired judgment.
I greatly disagree with the idea of Hendricks. It is morally inappropriate for individuals to kill their fetuses. As a matter of fact, individuals who take part in such practices are seen as suffering from impaired judgment; no one can kill a fetus without knowing its future. If born, the person can be a great person. Therefore killing the fetus reduces the living of future leaders who may lead the world to achieve greater advancements. The article is greatly important as it has built more knowledge concerning the ethical issues regarding abortion.
ReferenceEthics Unwrapped, (2021) Social Contract Theory.
Girn, R. (2006) Defending the Selfish Choice: Abortion Rights and the Morality of Egoism.
Hendricks, P. (2019). Even if the fetus is not a person, abortion is Immoral: the impairment argument. Bioethics, 33(2), 245-253
Jones, K., & Chaloner, C. (2007). Ethics of abortion: the arguments for and against. Nursing Standard, 21(37), 45+.
Svenaeus, F. (2018). Phenomenology of pregnancy and ethics of abortion. Medicine, Health Care Philosophy 21(1), 77-87.
Sample Solution
