Philippa Foot on Abortion and the Doctrine of the Double Effect In an argumentative essay written by Philippa Foot, the doctrine of the double effect is challenged, with respect to the moral permissibility of abortion. To clarify, the doctrine of the double effect is the view that sometimes harm is foreseen however not intended. Although Foot believes the doctrine to be important, she still rejects it—“…arguments in favour of the doctrine of the double effect…but I now believe that the conflict should be solved in another way” (Foot, 7). She proposes instead “alternative distinctions to be drawn” for the problem of abortion—such, positive versus negative rights. A positive right gives an individual the right to take certain actions while a