Abortion has always been a very contentious topic. Unlike many other fields of science and medicine, in the subject of ethics, and certainly abortion, there are no correct answers. There are many ethical conundrums that arise about abortion. Is the foetus alive? When does the foetus become are person? Can the foetus feel pain? Does the mother have the right to choose what happens to her own body?

Abortion arguments fall into two main categories, pro-life and pro-choice. In summary, the pro-life argument states that the foetus is alive, and it is wrong to murder a living person, therefore it is wrong to kill the baby, in whatever stage of development it is in. The pro-choice argument is mainly that a mother has the right to choose what happens to her own body.

Defining life

Some people feel that a foetus becomes a person once the potential for twinning is lost. This means that the foetus can no longer become two people, and in some eyes, can be thought of as in an individual person. This occurs at 14 days.

Another important landmark is the time when the foetus can begin to feel pain. This is thought to begin at 24 weeks. Furthermore, 24 weeks is also thought to be the point where the consciousness of the foetus begins, and it would be possible for the baby to survive outside of its mother at 24 weeks. I feel this 24 week landmark is a very important timescale for defining when life begins.

Other philosophers focus on self-consciousness being the hallmark of becoming a person (singer and Tooley). However, in my opinion, new-born babies may not be self-conscious yet are clearly alive and their own person.

Pro-life

A major pro-life argument is that it is not right to kill a child and by killing an embryo at any point, you are performing an act that will cause a potential child to not exist. By extension, therefore you are killing a potential child and this is tantamount to murder.

Pro-choice

The pro-choice argument is summarised by Thomson (1971) in what she calls the case of the connected violinist.

Imagine that one day you wake up connected to another person. As you awaken someone explains to you that the man you are connected to is a famous violinist who has a fatal kidney condition. The good news for the man is that if he remains connected to you, he will eventually be cured. But you are the only person who can save his life. The fans of the famous violinist have kidnapped you and connected you up to him, saying to you it will only take 9 months before you can be disconnected.

Thomson argues that although it would be very admirable to remain connected to the violinist for 9 months to save his life, by no means do you have to do it. In this examples the violinist (clearly a substitute for a baby) is given full moral status as a human being, yet according to Thomson, the woman can still choose not to be connected. This shows the complexity of the abortion argument, and that it does not simply depend on whether the embryo is a human being. Thomson is of the opinion that, even though the baby can be given status as a human being, the woman is still not obliged to keep that baby, and it is entirely up to her.

Abortion Law

Abortion became legal in the UK under the abortion act in 1967, the full legislation can be found here. The main points of the law are as follows:

"Subject to the provisions of this section, a person shall not be guilty of an offence under the law relating to abortion when a pregnancy is terminated by a registered medical practitioner if two registered medical practitioners are of the opinion, formed in good faith—

(a)that the pregnancy has not exceeded its twenty-fourth week and that the continuance of the pregnancy would involve risk, greater than if the pregnancy were terminated, of injury to the physical or mental health of the pregnant woman or any existing children of her family; or
(b)that the termination is necessary to prevent grave permanent injury to the physical or mental health of the pregnant woman; or
(c)that the continuance of the pregnancy would involve risk to the life of the pregnant woman, greater than if the pregnancy were terminated; or
(d)that there is a substantial risk that if the child were born it would suffer from such physical or mental abnormalities as to be seriously handicapped."

The arguments of abortion are clearly very complex, and I would love to read any opinions in the comments section. I have tried to highlight the arguments for and against in an impartial manner, so as not to bias readers and let them come to their own conclusions. Is there anything about the Abortion act that you would change? When do you feel that an embryo becomes a person? Is abortion murder?

References:
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http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1967/87/section/1