Bio-Ethics: Rape and Abortion

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses the question of whether or not a 15-year old girl, pregnant courtesy a rape committed by an unknown assailant, should abort the fetus or not. The paper also looks at whether or not the parents of the girl have an ethical obligation to counsel her against the abortion, an ethical obligation to counsel her to have the abortion, or whether they should simply stand aside and let the girl make up her own mind. The paper explains that in addressing this problematic subject, it is essential that some philosophical theories be introduced so as to offer an intellectual framework for the discussion and the paper then examines Kant's deontology (with its emphasis upon the categorical imperative) and the theory of utilitarianism espoused by Jeremy Bentham, John Stewart Mills and others (with its concomitant emphasis upon "proportionality"). In conclusion, the paper shows that a deontological approach to this problem is too inflexible and unyielding and that a better resolution is to apply a proportionality test which recognizes that the harm which would be done to the young girl if the child was brought to term outweighs the argument by others that abortion is unethical.

From the Paper:

"In the view of Erin Soros, the fetus arising from a rape becomes, at least for the woman or child who must bear it, a manifestation and reminder of the illegitimate desire of another. Additionally, the fetus is "a physical replacement for the part of herself that was lost through the trauma" (Soros, 1998, p.153). From an ethical stand-point, the woman's body has been violated by another and, to the extent that an abortion can heal the psychic wounds inflicted by rape, a woman is entirely within her prerogatives to demand that the product of sexual violence be excised from her being. For the young girl whose story lies at the heart of this paper, there is a utilitarian component to all of this; to wit, the suffering she would endure, and the displacement within her life which would result, from bringing the child to term outweighs whatever loss might be associated with aborting the fetus - at least that is Erin Soros' view."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Cook, R.J. (2003). Access to emergency contraception. Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology Canada, 25(11): 914-916.
• Bowman, Kerry. (2007). Deontology - Immanuel Kant (1724-1804). Understanding Deontology (Lecture Notes). Pp.1-18.
• Krishnamoni, D., and Jain, S.C. (1983). Termination of pregnancy in teenagers. Canadian Journal of Psychiatry, 28(6): 457-461.
• Martin, S.L. (1986). Canada's abortion law and the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Canadian Journal of Women and the Law, 1(2): 339-384
• McKay, Alexander. (1996). Rural parents' attitudes toward school-based sexual health education. Journal of Human Sexuality, 5(1): 15-23.

More papers on Bio-Ethics: Rape and Abortion:

• Analytical Essay # 131805 : "Bioethics and a 15-year Old Rape Victim"
• Analytical Essay # 148576 : "Ethical Theories and Abortion Issues: Three Perspectives"
• Analytical Essay # 23918 : "Peter Singer's Utilitarian Ethics and Abortion"

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