Ensayo Sobre El Aborto

ENGLISH LANGUAGE IV

Assignment: Argumentative paper
Topic: Abortion
Year: 2003

“Is abortion an ethical option or an undercover murder?”

Abortion is, undoubtedly, an ethical controversy and it raises a heated debate which has two predominant positions. The pro-choicers claim that women should have the right to choose over their bodies, and the pro-lifers mention the right as well, butthe right to life from the moment of conception. It is important to be open minded and to take into consideration both points of view in order to adopt a balanced position which will succeed in contemplating both perspectives and, at the same time, will allow us all to find an effective solution to this issue.

On one hand, taking the pro-choice stand is not about encouraging the practice ofabortion, but rather about defending your personal right to decide over your body and your life. Many people who boast to be fighting for the right to live condemn abortion by using arguments that appeal to human sensitivity in a treacherous way though. For instance, they describe surgeries in a way that makes everyone think that anyone defending abortion is an employee of the devil instead of aperson who defends the right to choose with solid arguments.
In Argentina, the immediate problem faced by a person who needs to get an abortion is the legal one: anybody practicing or undergoing this practice is outside the law. As a consequence, instead of promoting health and safety, the current regulations against birth control encourage any risk taker with a good knife to become a clandestinesurgeon and, what is even worse, allow them to ridiculously charge an exorbitant amount of money for an extremely rustic operation. For those who do not have enough money, the alternative to this carnage is to use even more dangerous means in order to perform the operation at home. Whether the operation is performed in a clandestine clinic or at home, chances are that the woman will have terriblephysical and psychological consequences, provided she survives. The fact is that, due to penalization, we find ourselves in an unfair situation in which it is impossible for a person without resources to get a safe abortion, while those who are well off, up to certain extent, do have this possibility.
In addition to this, and besides the economic issue, anybody who aborts is condemned by society.And a big portion of this condemnation has to do with the fact that abortion is illegal and immoral according to the Bible, the Penal Code and the Constitution.
Another justification for condemnation of abortion is the scientific theory supported by pro-lifers that states that life begins at conception. Nevertheless, there is a second scientific theory, accepted by pro-choicers, which demonstratesthat the fetus is not really a person until the third month of pregnancy. This evidences that the pro-choice stance does have a scientific background as valid as the pro-lifers.
Abortion should be a choice for all because that is the ethical way to go. What is needed are appropriate subsidies so as to have properly trained doctors and equipped hospitals that can perform the operation, and legalsupport so as to erase the idea that abortion is unethical and allow women who undergo this practice to be treated with responsibility and dignity.
Approving of abortion is a fighting for the right to choose over what is ours, for the end of prejudice and of the unmeasured power certain elite groups enjoy, which allows them to decide for everyone.
This alternative must exist, plainly because weare human beings with the capacity and the right to choose , and it is ethically correct to stand up for that right.



On the other hand, little does it matter how well it is performed or how well founded its reasons might be: abortion, regardless the way it is carried out is, by definition, murder. By advocating its legal
practice, its supporters are doing nothing but legitimizing a...