Searching for good General Paper sample essays on the topic of Moral Issues & Abortion? Aiming to prepare this sub-topic of Social Issues, Roles of Women, as well as Human Rights, as one of your main content topic for your upcoming GP exam, and is seeking for complete full length answers?
The following is a good essay sample for this theme for GP.
Q1: Discuss the moral issues raised by abortion.
Abortion has generated much controversy over the years. Technically speaking, abortion involves the termination of a pregnancy by deliberate means, mainly through medical methods. In this modern era of science and technology, methods of abortion have become so simple and relatively safe that this has caused severe debates to arise.
Firstly, is the foetus considered to be a life form? If it is, abortion would literally mean murder as it involves taking a life deliberately. In what kind of context is life of the human species truly defined? Is it merely the mechanical functions of life or does it involve the intellectual ability of our species? If it is the former, foetuses do respire and perform most of the metabolic functions of life. In fact studies have shown that they even respond to external stimuli. But even with the vast and complex development of science, nobody still really knows whether the foetus has feelings and thoughts. Moralists argue that a foetus is just like your and me, and hence, denying its right to live is denying life to a fellow human being.
Moreover, with the advocation of equal human rights taking place so dramatically currently, how can we actually deny life to a vulnerable and defenceless foetus who can not even voice his or her own opinion? But looking at it the other way, the foetus completely depends on its mother to live, hence is it not right that the right of the foetus can be decided by whom it depends solely upon? After all, it is the mother’s body and is she truly prepared to sacrifice her whole life in one way or another for the child she is bearing or does she consider herself a temporary reproducing machine? This involves the right of the mother and hence, whose right is it really? The controversy continues.
Secondly, are abortions justified in cases of unwanted pregnancies? Truly, if it is not, a victim of rape who did not want her child would have to bear with it and the social stigma she faces for the rest of her life, and it is unfair to the child for being rejected due to something he did not do. Indeed, it would be immoral to force a 12 year-old victim of incest to bear a child, and for a child to bring up a child herself, or to force a couple bearing a child with serious physical and mental deformities to have the child and bring burden and pain to them and the child itself. Many couples who are financially unsound or not ready to have a child would turn to abortion to be practical and for their own good surely. But then, who are they to decide whether the child is to live? Is it not despicable selfishness to sacrifice the life of your own child for your own convenience? Emotional stress results.
Along with the moral aspect is the religious one. Roman Catholicism considers abortion a sin as they believe that the soul enters the body on conception and that life, a sacred gift from God, is being tarnished by the act of abortion. Buddhism completely prohibits the taking of a life as they believe very much in the principle of compassion. It is unacceptable in Islam too but due to the belief that the soul enters the body after 120 days of gestation. certain Islamic countries have liberalized their laws such as the Mufti Jordan in 1964, Morocco in 1968 and Kuwait in 1982, with the condition that abortion is carried out before the 4th month and only because of special and extreme conditions and reasons. What is even worse is the act of abortion in multiple pregnancies where certain foetuses are aborted in favour of others. Who are men to know the future only by judging the present? Is it acceptable that the strong foetus is chosen against the weak? The real controversy here lies in the fact that men are playing God or trying to play God and this may backfire on mankind in one way or other. Furthermore, they argue that the liberalisation of abortion laws would even lead to the acceptance of the termination of the sick, old and deformed, that the act of euthanasia may sprout from the action of abortion.
This further brings us to the true meaning of life. We have been told and taught that life is a precious gift from God, and it is priceless, invaluable and only given to us once – of course putting the idea of rebirths aside. Is it not a shame to be able to take life in a few seconds, so sim ply, and easily? For example, in Singapore, abortions can be carried out with the mere payment of $5.00. Is life worth only that little? It is truly a degradation of the hu man species by making life seem so cheap and useless. Moreover, with the creation of drugs such as the RU486, abortion can be carried out without any pain at all and the mother is said to be able to ‘dance a jig’ two hours later.
But then, why raise such an alarmist view on abortion when suicide, murder and death sentences have existed for such a long long time? There is no set answer for it is up to an individual to decide.
Pro-natalists also argue that abortion is used as a means of population control. Maybe the reaction should be ‘Goodness gracious me!’ Don’t we have enough methods of birth control that save so much trouble by avoiding fertilisation all together? Why conceive at all if one plans to terminate the pregnancy? Must that be the method of birth control she chooses? Indeed, it is horrible to think of it that way but it is true, for certain countries do use abortion for population control reasons. This further pro motes sexual promiscuity as, since abortion can be so easily ‘obtained’, why restrain yourself at all?! For example in Singapore, before the 1970’s, the number of abortions per year used to be less than 50 people but currently, more than 20,000 abortions a year are carried out, 10% being teenagers. The Abortion Act of 1974 allows abortion with the written consent of the mother, and for girls above 18, parental consent is not needed. Pro-abortionists ask why a child should be brought into the world when he is after all going to suffer because of his parents? But then again, who are we to judge the future? Maybe, we should just let nature take her course.
Hence, it is hard to give one rigid stand on the question of abortion for it would seem to be like passing a judgement in the dark, without evidence. The issue should be studied on a case to case basis. Abolishing abortion completely would only lead to more ‘underground abortion clinics’ and allowing it completely would only cause further controversy and conflict. The issue continues.