A Defense of Abortion Essays

In “A Defense for Abortion,” Judith Jarvis Thomson grants those who are against abortion the right that personhood starts at conception but goes on to argue for the permissibility of abortion by complicating the personhood argument. In this paper I will argue for the defense of abortion by first explaining Thomson’s famous violinist case, then I will criticize her argument. Thomson begins laying out her argument by first describing the main focus when interpreting if abortion is permissible or

In “A Defense of Abortion,” Judith Jarvis Thomson maintains that there are instances where an unplanned pregnancy can occur, but it does not give the fetus the right to inhabit a woman’s body due to her simply having had sex. In this paper, I will address her argument using the creative analogy that this is akin to an open window as an invitation to an unwanted intruder, and argue how it falls short of the mark because of the responsibility attached as the consequence of one’s actions. Thomson

In defense of the permissibility of abortion 1. Main argument My purpose in this paper is to critically access Thomson’s defense of the permissibility of abortion and further defend abortion with my supplement. My thesis is that abortion should be permitted by the choice of the pregnant women, premised on the fact that fetus is a person and abortion can only be performed at the cost of the children’s life. And since both the mother and the fetus have the right to life, the fetus may have the right

In her paper, "A Defense of Abortion," Judith Jarvis Thomson engages in a nuanced exploration of the moral aspects surrounding abortion, specifically addressing the common opposition based on the belief that a fetus is a human being with an inherent right to life from the moment of conception. Thomson constructs a series of thought experiments and logical scenarios to dissect and challenge the anti-abortion stance. Thomson begins by questioning the logical connection between the belief in fetal personhood

Abortion is deliberately ending or ‘terminating’ a pregnancy, also known as “termination of pregnancy.” About half of all pregnancies are unintended. Of these unintended pregnancies, 22% chose the route of abortion instead of saving the fetuses. According to the textbook, abortions due to injury or birth defect is called a spontaneous abortion or simply, a miscarriage. The intention termination of a pregnancy through surgery or medication is also known as an induced abortion or just simply as an

In "A Defense of Abortion," Judith Jarvis Thomson presents a compelling ethical argument supporting the pro-choice perspective. Thompson’s argument is centered around the belief in women’s bodily autonomy, the reality of unforeseen pregnancies, and the prioritization of women's health. Thompson argues that individuals have an inherent right to make autonomous decisions about their bodies and reproductive choices. She asserts that women should enjoy full bodily autonomy and reproductive freedom. Throughout

In “A Defense of Abortion,” by Judith Jarvis Thomson, Thomson believes in autonomy, meaning that adults have complete control of what happens to their body. According to Thomson, the fetus’ right to life is not always stronger than the mothers’ right to bodily integrity; the woman has no obligation to the fetus unless the pregnancy resulted from a voluntary act (RT, 114). In her thought experiment, the violinist, Thomson uses the analogy of a violinist and an innocent person. The violinists’ only

In “A Defense of Abortion” by Judith Jarvis Thomson, she argues for the claim that even if a fetus is a person from conception (and has a full right to life), a pregnant woman still has the right to have an abortion even if she is characterized as self-centered. There is a case where she should not choose to have an abortion because it is seen as morally wrong (435). The opposition to abortion relies on the idea that a fetus is a human being from the moment they are conceived, instead of explaining

Paper Word Count: 1519 Section 1 Introduction In Section 2, I will present Thomson’s argument that abortion is impermissible. In Section 3, I will raise an objection to that argument. In Section 4, I will explain how Thomson could respond to my objection of their theory. In Section 5, I will examine two ways my objection could be defended from this response. Section 1 Thomson’s Argument Abortion has become of the most controversial things in history. To say its permissible or impermissible will

Miles Carter Phil 4 In her 1971 essay, A Defense of Abortion, Judith Thomson takes a philosophical glance at abortion, and through the use of analogy and logical sequencing, she convincingly defends the moral permissibility of abortion. The key to her essay is that she does not focus on the incredibly subjective question of when personhood begins, in fact she grants (for the sake of argument) that a fetus is a person. Her main reasoning for doing this is in response to the “slippery-slope” argument

In “A Defense of Abortion” Judith Jarvis Thomson argues that abortion is not always immoral, even when we assume for the sake of argument that a fetus is an innocent person. In cases of rape and even some cases of protected consensual sex, Thomson says it is not immoral for a woman to kill a fetus by denying it use of her body. There are two pieces to Thompson’s argument. First, she rejects the common assumption that to kill an innocent person is always morally wrong. And she uses a clever counterexample

In "A Defense of Abortion," Judith Jarvis Thomson offers philosophical questions to show that even if a fetus has a right to life, abortion is not always morally wrong. One of her most famous analogies is the violinist scenario, in which you are accidentally linked to "a famous unconscious violinist" (Thomson, 49) who needs your body to survive. Thomson argues that, while it would be great to keep the violinist connected, there is no moral need to do so, implying that a woman's right to physical

Legalizing Abortions: A woman’s choice for control Judith Jarvis Thomson made a revolutionary essay towards women’s rights and their rights to their own bodies in A Defense of Abortion featured in Philosophy & Public Affairs of Fall 1971. Many philosophers will go into detail upon detail about the morality of abortions whether the fetus should be considered a human being or more so if the fetus should have the same rights as a human being, the right most important, the right to life. Thomson goes

Thomson, in “A Defense of Abortion” believe that fetus become humans, they believe there is a cut off line. Jones(2002), believes that because “By the tenth week(mark), for example, it already has a face, arms, and legs, fingers and toes; it has internal organs, and brain activity is detectable”(Pg.39), that ten weeks into pregnancy is cut off line. That the fetus before ten weeks is just a clump of cells without soul or life. However, according to Jane English(1975), in “Abortion and the Concept

Abortion is, and always will be, a complicated issue with many, even more complicated sides. There are those who believe that abortion should be entirely outlawed as it is an unforgivable offense to kill another human being. On the other end of the spectrum, there are those who believe that abortion should be subsidized by the government and seen as a normal, everyday procedure. Then, there are those who stand somewhere in the middle, not completely agreeing with either extreme. In the midst of the

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

Abortion is the deliberate termination of a human pregnancy, most often performed during the first twenty-eight weeks of pregnancy. Many women choose to have an abortion because of the failure of birth control, rape or sadly not wanting the child. However most women who consider this procedure, do not fully understand how it is done or the aftermath. According to the United States government, a baby who is yet to be born is still classified as a human being ("Abortion). An act was founded to

“A Defense of Abortion” by Judith Jarvis Thomson is an excellent essay because the author portrays the many controversies surrounding abortion. Throughout the essay Thomson uses logic and reasoning to argue that abortion is not always morally impermissible and takes into consideration each individual’s right to life and a right to decide what happens to ones own body. Thomson highly values the concept of autonomy and believes that should never be taken away from anyone. One premise she uses to show

Abortion has been one of the most controversial political topics worldwide throughout history. One of the biggest, if not the most significant argument in the longing debate of abortion versus morality. Deep diving into Judith Jarvis Thomson's A Defense of Abortion, I will be breaking down and evaluating her analogies regarding abortion of why I agree she succeeds in showing what she intended for the defense of pro-choice abortion. First and foremost Thomson states right off the bat for the sake

In “A Defense of Abortion,” Thomson’s argument is centered around the general concepts of what one is morally obligated to do, what one ought to do, and what is the right thing to do. Thomson asserts that one is only morally obligated not to violate other people's rights. Meanwhile, the action one ought to take is kind and selfless, which often requires more effort than just not violating others’ rights. Oftentimes, Thomson finds that people associate what one ought to do with what one is morally