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Our Only World Wendell Berry Analysis

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In regards to homosexuality, Wendell Berry feels that it really is not up to the government to decide if a certain type of love is acceptable or unacceptable. He states that he thinks the government should not be involved in the private lives of two consenting adults (Berry, 86). When the government gets involved, it allows two things to happen. He states that when the government decides who can and cannot marry, they are making it clear that they have the power to give and take away our otherwise “God given” rights that they are in charge of protecting (Berry 87). He also states that when the government gets to express who can marry and who cannot get married, they are punishing those who have not committed a crime (Berry, 88). Essentially, …show more content…

He states plainly that he believes that a woman should not get an abortion unless the woman’s life is at stake (Berry, 84). However, making abortion illegal could have dangerous consequences. In Our Only World, he states that there are four legal routes that the government could take in regards to abortion. First, abortion could be outlawed with no exceptions (Berry, 84), meaning that a mother could not have an abortion to save her life. Second, it could be forbidden with specific exceptions (Berry, 84). This would mean that the government would then have to establish specific situations when it was okay to have an abortion. Third, abortion could be allowed with specific situations (Berry, 84). Finally, his fourth option states that it could be legal with no exceptions, meaning that there would be no law against abortion (Berry, 84). The problem with the first and fourth choice is that both of these options would most likely cause a protest from the “pro-life” or “pro-choice” side of the abortion debate. The middle options leaves this issue of women’s rights in the hands of the government, which could be confusing and dangerous (Berry, 85). This is due in light of the fact that we do not really know when life begins. If nobody knows for sure when a person is truly a person, or when life begins, then it is almost impossible to legally state when an abortion can take place. Berry states that there should be no law against abortion, for abortion should be a private affair that is best left in the hands of the individuals involved (Berry, 86). He also states that if the government were to outlaw abortion it would

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142 Words | 1 Pages

Then, Chapter 2 explains how Wendell Berry is placed in relation to the agrarian economists that came before him. In addition to the key old agrarian, transcendentalists, and New Agrarian theorists, this chapter examines the theorists that Berry has mentioned in his essays that were influential on his thinking are: Louis Bromfield, F. H. King, Thomas Kuhn’s The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, Scott and Helen Nearing and their book Living the Good Life, and Stewart Collis’ In The Triumph of the Tree with its discussion of the historical movement between the “Era of Mythology”, the “Era of Economics” and the anticipated “Era of Ecology.” Because Wendell Berry has confessed that he has only done a bit of reading and research in the agrarian

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202 Words | 1 Pages

1. Wendell Berry states the valid question, “By the abuse of our finite sources, our lives are already in danger. What might we bring into danger by the abuse of ‘infinite’ sources?”. This literature was published in 1977, 40 years ago, and I believe it is safe to say that our seemingly infinite resources (clean air, un-acidified water) have underwent what Berry predicted. When we knew we were on this fast downward spiral, why was there no Paris Agreement then, activists were abundant and knew of the grim future, yet we only decided to step in when it the issue had started to affect the Earth.

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287 Words | 2 Pages

There is no need to risk a woman’s health and livelihood by taking away her choice; only the mother-to-be can know her own situation thoroughly enough to make the best possible decision about her future. This is further supported by the nation’s judicial system during the Roe vs. Wade case in 1973 where Harry Blackmun stated that the “fundamental right of single women and married persons to choose whether or not to have children is protected by the Ninth Amendment, through the Fourteenth Amendment.” This court ruling made abortions decidedly legal in the United States, but many women are still being denied the right to terminate their pregnancies. When the ability to choose a safe and legal option is taken away, women that still seek an abortion

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498 Words | 2 Pages

Women who wanted to get a legal abortion would either have no choice but to have the baby or go to a different state and get the legal abortion

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1258 Words | 6 Pages

It would therefore not be just to allow a woman to die at the expense of not wanting to kill the unborn child. A woman has a right to decide what happens to and in her body. Having

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1008 Words | 5 Pages

According to the WHO, there are an estimated 40-50 million abortions every year around the globe. The dictionary definition for abortion is ‘the deliberate termination of a human pregnancy’, and people usually very absolutist about their stances regarding this topic. The two sides of the argument are those who are pro-choice or pro-life. The pro-choice side argue that it is the free will of the parent/s to decide on how to handle the pregnancy as unplanned pregnancies could mean a detrimental life for both the parent/s and the baby as the parent/s may not have the resources to support and take care of the baby, or are not ready for such big change and responsibility. On the other hand, the pro-life side argue that life begins at conception

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468 Words | 2 Pages

In the United States, laws that had to do with abortions didn’t exist until the 1800s. During that time women did not have many rights. In 1821, Connecticut passed the first law in the United States barring abortions after “quickening”, which were usually performed by administering a type of poison to the woman after the fourth month of pregnancy. By the 1880s, all states had laws criminalizing abortions and these laws stayed intact until the 1960s and 1970s. In 1973, the Supreme Court decision in Roe v. Wade made it possible for women to get safe, legal abortions from trained medical practitioners.

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1144 Words | 5 Pages

In the 1960's some states began to allow abortions to happen under certain circumstances. In 1973 the United States Supreme Court held in Roe v. Wade that the right of privacy protected women's right to end an unwanted pregnancy before the fetus has developed the capacity for viability outside the womb. Usually made around 24 weeks after conception. The states govern the terms under which legal abortions may be performed. In Roe v. Wade case it caused a controversy over the rights of the mother versus those of the fetus.

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1038 Words | 5 Pages

With almost half the nation divided among their views, abortion remains one of the most controversial topics in our society. Since Roe v. Wade, our views in society as well as following court cases have been progressing toward the woman’s right to choose. The precedent set by Roe v. Wade made the Supreme Court acknowledge that it cannot rule specifically when life begins and it also affirms that it is the woman’s right to have an abortion under the 14th Amendment. In the 1st Amendment, the Establishment Clause forbids the government from passing laws “which aid one religion, aid all religions, or prefer one religion over another”. Many Christian pro-lifers use their religious beliefs to dispute when life begins.

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1053 Words | 5 Pages

Essentially,

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524 Words | 3 Pages

“An Entrance to the Woods” is an essay by Wendell Berry about the serenity and importance of nature in his life. In this essay, the author uses tone shifts from dark to light to convey his idea of finding rebirth and rejuvenation through nature. In the beginning of the essay, Berry has left civilization for the first time in a while, and finds himself missing human company and feeling “inexplicably sad” (671). This feeling of sadness is in part from the woods itself, and partly due to Berry leaving the hustle and bustle of normal life in the cities, and the violent change from constant noise to silence causes him to feel lonely in the woods. As a result of feeling alone in the woods, the tone of the essay is dark and brooding, as seen through Berry’s somber diction and mood, as seen on page 671: “And then a heavy feeling of melancholy and lonesomeness comes over me.

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544 Words | 3 Pages

This is when the idea of abortions becoming acceptable within certain circumstances came into play. In the 1973 Roe v. Wade Supreme Court case, the Supreme Court legalized abortion holding that the constitutional right of privacy “is broad enough to encompass a woman’s decision to terminate her pregnancy.” The court found that a woman’s decision to terminate a pregnancy in the first trimester was protected under the right of privacy which was founded in the Fourteenth Amendment’s concept of personal liberty. The court also allowed states to place restrictions in the second trimester to protect a woman’s

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922 Words | 4 Pages

In the novel Longitude written by Dava Sobel and published by Walker, recaps the story of the true story of navigation history changing. This Popular Science novel draws attention to readers who take pleasure in historic events and scientific discoveries, much like many other works of Sobel. Dava Sobel was famous for her popular exhibitions of scientific topics, such as Longitude. In the last 14th century, the great lack of longitude calculations was a drastic battle for captains and their crew, and Britain was vulnerable to anyone to fix the problem. Clockmaker John Harrison seeks to triumph the contest of best clock in order to claim the prize.

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484 Words | 2 Pages

Abortion is one of the most controversial topics discussed in our world today. Millions of fetuses never got a chance to be born because a mother chose to abort them. Although I do not believe in abortion, I believe a woman should have the right to decide whether to have a baby or not. Our textbook presents views and arguments on the issues. The article from our text on “A Defense of Abortion” written by Judith Jarvis Thomason states the right to have an abortion should be the pregnant woman’s decision.

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506 Words | 3 Pages

One key controversies on the issue of abortion is centered on the question of when life begins. Some advocates which are known as pro-life

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