A Comprehensive Ethical Analysis of Abortion in Modern Society

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of the ethical issues surrounding abortion in modern society. It begins by defining abortion and highlighting its controversial nature, discussing arguments from various ethical perspectives. The paper explores the viewpoints of Christian ethics, examining how religious beliefs influence the debate. It delves into the arguments of both supporters and opponents of abortion, considering the rights of the fetus versus the rights of the pregnant person, and the role of moral and religious perspectives. The report also examines the potential medical and psychological impacts of abortion on women, and the role of social factors such as rape and incest. Through an examination of ethical frameworks like virtue ethics and utilitarian ethics, the paper offers a critical assessment of the ethical dilemmas and suggests possible solutions. It concludes by emphasizing the ongoing debate and the need for further investigation into the principal causes of abortion to find viable solutions. The report includes references to academic sources, providing a well-researched overview of the topic.

Running head: ETHICS IN MODERN SOCIETY
Ethics in Modern Society
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

1ETHICS IN MODERN SOCIETY
Abortion has been one of the most controversial ethical issues in the modern society. It
has been debated by several critics all across the world. The spurring debates on this issue have
opened a horizon of new studies and many critics have opined their viewpoints regarding this.
This is a human action that has raised the concerns of several people and this action has been
criticized from moral perspectives. Christian worldview has also enlightened this issue from
several perspectives because of its implementation in the modern world. Abortion is an action
through which the fetus or embryo within a female body is killed intentionally so it can end
pregnancy.1 All the ethical concerns will be discussed in this paper regarding abortion and why it
should be stopped. The viewpoints of Christian perspectives will also be discussed for the better
understanding of people. It is highly debated mostly because killing of human beings
intentionally is a crime even if it is a fetus or embryo.
The act of abortion is considered as an unethical or immoral action because fetuses are
considered as beings that are completely dependent on their bearers i.e. mothers. It is not at all
justifiable to kill human beings at all. Critics have opined that fetuses are alive through cells but
they should be considered as human beings since they have life. They are not yet grown up to be
complete human beings and they are completely innocent for that matter.2 In this scenario, it is a
crime to kill such human organisms that do not have the powers to protect themselves at all. The
act of abortion is done through operations so the natural delivery of human beings is completely
1 Potter, Ralph Β. "The Abortion Debate". Reaction To The Modern Women's Movement, 1963 To The Present,
2018, 13-26. doi:10.4324/9780203822364-4.
2 Arrell, Robbie. "Public Reason And Abortion: Was Rawls Right After All?". The Journal Of Ethics 23, no. 1
(2019): 37-53. doi:10.1007/s10892-019-09280-8.

2ETHICS IN MODERN SOCIETY
halted. Some people tend to confuse the act of abortion with that of stillbirth of a baby. It is
never the same thing because a baby is born dead through natural delivery. Therefore, these two
aspects are completely different from each other. Most people are of the opinion that all the
living beings in the world have their rights to live. It is definitely their fundamental right and no
one should take away that right from them.
On the other hand, some communities also see this act as an ethical thing because of
their own viewpoints. There has been a huge debate regarding this issue. There are very few
people who have supported this act of abortion. They have mentioned the fact that all the females
have their right to decide what they want to do with their bodies. After that, abortion becomes
quite vital when it is associated with the aspect of gender equality.3 There have been many cases
when women are left alone after being pregnant and they have to work hard to earn their
livelihood. In this context, it becomes almost impossible for them to give birth to a baby and
raise him or her.
Abortion would provide solidarity to an individual woman to start her life afresh. After
that they can live their live at the fullest potential. If abortion is banned worldwide or ethical
reasons, many women will have to pay extra money to get the abortions done in an illegal
manner.4 The choice of abortion should be included within the pregnancy rights since it will
provide the option of ending the pregnancy at free will. People supporting the act of abortion
3
4 Tooley, Michael. "Philosophy, Critical Thinking And ‘After-Birth Abortion: Why Should The Baby Live?’".
Journal Of Medical Ethics 39, no. 5 (2013): 266-272. doi:10.1136/medethics-2012-100861.

3ETHICS IN MODERN SOCIETY
have also highlighted the issue that women should not be considered as a mode or container for
carrying fetus.5 Rather, she should be portrayed as a human being who has every right to decide
on her pregnancy. If she is carrying the bay, she can also kill it depending on situations.
Now, the unethical concerns will be discussed to highlight on the opposing debates
regarding abortion of babies. There are millions of social activists and workers who do not
support the act of abortion at any cost. They have been trying their best options so they can find
some practical solutions that would stop abortion and convince women not to go into that kind of
situations. The supporters of abortion believe in the rights of individual persons. On the contrary,
abortion is regarding the security of rights of beings to live. So, critics say that right to life is
always more powerful than right of individual persons. Some social critics have also mentioned
about the other evil practices like oppression of women that has not been given that much
importance like that of abortion. Supporters of abortion believe an individual woman has the
right to abort her baby but the actual background of this scenario must be detailed to understand
she had been oppressed by patriarchal males in the past.6 These critics opine violence and
oppression against women should be minimized so incidents of abortion will radically decrease
as well.
5 Fitzgerald, John J. "Christian Witness On Abortion: The Examples Of Paul Ramsey And Stanley Hauerwas".
Studies In Christian Ethics 27, no. 4 (2014): 431-452. doi:10.1177/0953946814540741.
6 Biegler, Paul. "Public Distress As A Moral Consideration In After-Birth Abortion". Journal Of Medical Ethics 39,
no. 5 (2013): 323.2-323. doi:10.1136/medethics-2012-101164b.

4ETHICS IN MODERN SOCIETY
According to various critics, abortion has been taken as the means of murder.7 This action
can never be supported since women might have the rights as an individual but law has not given
her the right to kill a being that is dependent on her. This is a shameful act and it is against the
sanctity of human beings. It has been critically acclaimed that no civilization has ever permitted
human beings to take away lives of others without the court punishment orders.
According to the statistical data, more than 1.5 million couples want to adopt children so
it is very vague to discuss about killing unwanted children. Ethically, it is completely wrong and
it should be stopped to protect lives. People can adopt children instead of getting pregnant and
killing them in the pregnancy period.8 The virtue theory is an important theoretical framework
through which this issue can be discussed. This theoretical framework has been virtue ethics
theory of Aristotle. According to this theory, this act of abortion is against virtues of mankind.
The utilitarian ethics theory also does not support the act of abortion since loss of human life
will hamper the social balance and economical welfare too.9
Apart from ethical complications, it can be said that abortion might cause several
complications in the later lives of women. These medical complications might damage their
7 Dillon, Michele. "Asynchrony In Attitudes Toward Abortion And Gay Rights: The Challenge To Values
Alignment". Journal For The Scientific Study Of Religion 53, no. 1 (2014): 1-16. doi:10.1111/jssr.12096.
8 Banner, Michael C. Ethics Of Everyday Life. New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 2014.
9 Hanschmidt, Franz, Katja Linde, Anja Hilbert, Steffi G. Riedel- Heller, and Anette Kersting. "Abortion Stigma: A
Systematic Review". Perspectives On Sexual And Reproductive Health 48, no. 4 (2016): 169-177.
doi:10.1363/48e8516.

5ETHICS IN MODERN SOCIETY
organs as well.10 Due to these complications, chances of miscarriage can increase along with
pelvic inflammatory diseases. Critics have also highlighted the issue that proper medical care
must be taken to make sure no harm is done or women do not get pregnant in case of incest and
rape. From the medical perception, abortion must not be used as another way of contraception.
Adult couples should have the sense of responsibility about bringing another life into earth.11
They have the option of using precautions that they should do for saving a blooming fetus.
In the next section, Biblical or Christian worldview should be discussed regarding
abortion. This act of killing a human fetus in its mother’s womb has been criticized because
Jesus Christ respected and valued all types of lives on earth. Therefore, a born child and an
unborn child have the similar value according to New Testament. Christians should always think
about their lives how God has seen it.12 Christians are also of the opinion that the creator of all
things is God Himself. Therefore, killing a living being of any form is equal to disrespecting
God.
Therefore, it has been a very crucial thing for all followers of the Christian religion. They
must respect all the words of God since it is the only stagnant thing in the world. Life is very
10 Rini, Regina A. "Of Course The Baby Should Live: Against ‘After-Birth Abortion’". Journal Of Medical Ethics
39, no. 5 (2013): 353-356. doi:10.1136/medethics-2012-100640.
11 Jeffes, Jonathan Mark, and Julian Evans. What Happens After An Abortion?. Chichester: Lean Press Ltd, 2014.
12 Ackerman, Katrina. "In Defence Of Reason: Religion, Science, And The Prince Edward Island Anti-Abortion
Movement, 1969–1988". Canadian Bulletin Of Medical History 31, no. 2 (2014): 117-138.
doi:10.3138/cbmh.31.2.117.

6ETHICS IN MODERN SOCIETY
pure and holy.13 The phase of beginning of a life is also very pure and innocent. Therefore, no
one should engage in any kind of violent acts that results in the death of someone. God is the
giver of life and human beings are just the modes of bringing the lives into earth. Jesus Christ
has advised all the lives to be cared and nourished.14
Anyone who disobeys the wish of God will be punished very hard. In the Bible, it has
also been mentioned that God had some special purposes when he had created them.15 The act of
abortion of killing of that life is definitely destroying the purpose of God. It also means going
against God’s command. God knows every individual even before he or she is born. So, there is
no point in killing those living entities. All lives are embodiments of God so they should be
loved and respected properly.16
It is duly significant to discuss about the practical examples of abortion in the real life.
The main causes of abortion are unsafe sexual practices between couples or social evils like rape
or incest. Social workers and crime departments must take up some immediate and severe action
so all these things can be stopped. This will reduce the unethical practices of abortion of society.
It is true that a woman ha the right to take her decisions but it is completely unethical to kill a
13 Kozlowska, Iga, Daniel Béland, and André Lecours. "Nationalism, Religion, And Abortion Policy In Four
Catholic Societies". Nations And Nationalism 22, no. 4 (2016): 824-844. doi:10.1111/nana.12157.
14 Coleman, Stephen. The Ethics Of Artificial Uteruses. London: Routledge, 2017
15 Gissler, M, E Karalis, and V-M Ulander. "Suicide Rate After Induced Abortion Decreased In Finland After
Current Care Guidelines". European Journal Of Public Health 24, no. 2 (2014). doi:10.1093/eurpub/cku163.045.
16 Radner, Ephraim. Church, Society, And The Christian Common Good. Oregon: Cascade Books, 2017.

7ETHICS IN MODERN SOCIETY
living entity as a fetus. It is wrong both ethically and religiously.17 A practical example of
abortion is a woman getting kidnapped and raped and gets pregnant. She might not be adult so it
leaves her with no options but to go through abortion surgery. Another example is of committing
sexual activities without precaution and the female gets pregnant. She has to abort the baby in
her womb to protect herself from being criticized socially.18
In the concluding section, it can be said that abortion has been largely criticized all over
the world. Though some critics have supported abortion for some reasons, it has been criticized
mostly. The ethical challenges regarding this social practice have been highlighted in the paper.
It has been found that abortion will give many medical complications for women in their future
lives. Christian followers have also protested largely against this practice since they believe Jesus
Christ to be the giver of life. If a woman kills her baby inside womb intentionally, she will
disobey or disrespect the commands of God. Thus, abortion has remained a controversial issue
and further investigations regarding principal causes of abortion will help to find out viable
solutions.
17 May, Larry. Applied Ethics. 6th ed. New York: Routledge, 2017.
18 Svenaeus, Fredrik. "Phenomenology Of Pregnancy And The Ethics Of Abortion". Medicine, Health Care And
Philosophy 21, no. 1 (2017): 77-87. doi:10.1007/s11019-017-9786-x.

8ETHICS IN MODERN SOCIETY
References and Bibliography
Ackerman, Katrina. "In Defence Of Reason: Religion, Science, And The Prince Edward Island
Anti-Abortion Movement, 1969–1988". Canadian Bulletin Of Medical History 31, no. 2 (2014):
117-138. doi:10.3138/cbmh.31.2.117.
Arrell, Robbie. "Public Reason And Abortion: Was Rawls Right After All?". The Journal Of
Ethics 23, no. 1 (2019): 37-53. doi:10.1007/s10892-019-09280-8.
Banner, Michael C. Ethics Of Everyday Life. New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 2014.
Biegler, Paul. "Public Distress As A Moral Consideration In After-Birth Abortion". Journal Of
Medical Ethics 39, no. 5 (2013): 323.2-323. doi:10.1136/medethics-2012-101164b.
Biegler, Paul. "Public Distress As A Moral Consideration In After-Birth Abortion". Journal Of
Medical Ethics 39, no. 5 (2013): 323.2-323. doi:10.1136/medethics-2012-101164b.
Boyle, Mary. "Re-Thinking Abortion", 2014. doi:10.4324/9781315787986.
Coleman, Stephen. The Ethics Of Artificial Uteruses. London: Routledge, 2017.
Dillon, Michele. "Asynchrony In Attitudes Toward Abortion And Gay Rights: The Challenge To
Values Alignment". Journal For The Scientific Study Of Religion 53, no. 1 (2014): 1-16.
doi:10.1111/jssr.12096.
Fitzgerald, John J. "Christian Witness On Abortion: The Examples Of Paul Ramsey And Stanley
Hauerwas". Studies In Christian Ethics 27, no. 4 (2014): 431-452.
doi:10.1177/0953946814540741.

9ETHICS IN MODERN SOCIETY
Gissler, M, E Karalis, and V-M Ulander. "Suicide Rate After Induced Abortion Decreased In
Finland After Current Care Guidelines". European Journal Of Public Health 24, no. 2 (2014).
doi:10.1093/eurpub/cku163.045.
Hanschmidt, Franz, Katja Linde, Anja Hilbert, Steffi G. Riedel- Heller, and Anette Kersting.
"Abortion Stigma: A Systematic Review". Perspectives On Sexual And Reproductive Health 48,
no. 4 (2016): 169-177. doi:10.1363/48e8516.
Jeffes, Jonathan Mark, and Julian Evans. What Happens After An Abortion?. Chichester: Lean
Press Ltd, 2014.
Jelen, Ted G. "The Subjective Bases Of Abortion Attitudes: A Cross National Comparison Of
Religious Traditions". Politics And Religion 7, no. 3 (2014): 550-567.
doi:10.1017/s1755048314000467.
Kozlowska, Iga, Daniel Béland, and André Lecours. "Nationalism, Religion, And Abortion
Policy In Four Catholic Societies". Nations And Nationalism 22, no. 4 (2016): 824-844.
doi:10.1111/nana.12157.
May, Larry. Applied Ethics. 6th ed. New York: Routledge, 2017.
Potter, Ralph Β. "The Abortion Debate". Reaction To The Modern Women's Movement, 1963 To
The Present, 2018, 13-26. doi:10.4324/9780203822364-4.
Radner, Ephraim. Church, Society, And The Christian Common Good. Oregon: Cascade Books,
2017.
Rini, Regina A. "Of Course The Baby Should Live: Against ‘After-Birth Abortion’". Journal Of
Medical Ethics 39, no. 5 (2013): 353-356. doi:10.1136/medethics-2012-100640.

10ETHICS IN MODERN SOCIETY
Svenaeus, Fredrik. "Phenomenology Of Pregnancy And The Ethics Of Abortion". Medicine,
Health Care And Philosophy 21, no. 1 (2017): 77-87. doi:10.1007/s11019-017-9786-x.
Tooley, Michael. "Philosophy, Critical Thinking And ‘After-Birth Abortion: Why Should The
Baby Live?’". Journal Of Medical Ethics 39, no. 5 (2013): 266-272. doi:10.1136/medethics-
2012-100861.