Utilitarianism and Perspectives on Abortion

Paper Summary:

This paper looks at how two polarized camps have emerged within the abortion debate, one (the liberal camp) fervently in favor of abortion and the other (the conservative camp) heatedly opposed. In particular, it looks at how in his important work, "Abortion and Moral Theory", L.W. Sumner takes an essentially utilitarian approach towards the subject whereas philosophers such as Earl Winkler and Barry Hoffmaster have applied serious and important criticisms to applied ethics in general and to utilitarian arguments in particular. The paper argues that despite Sumner's best efforts, applied ethics systems such as utilitarianism cannot resolve the important issues in abortion. It concludes that it is necessary to follow the advice of Hoffmaster, who recommends that we move away from theory-driven applied ethics, and instead move to a morality that is understood contextually.

From the Paper:

"It is argued that there is no area of applied ethics that highlights more starkly the pitfalls inherent in applied ethics than the area of abortion. This is because there is no other area in which two human lives (with their associated rights and/or duties) are so closely intertwined. The foetus is parasitically dependent on the woman for life itself. The woman's right to autonomy is inevitably intertwined with considerations of her duties towards others, such as the foetus (primarily) and the father of the foetus (as a distant second). "

Sample of Sources Used:

• Claire, Miriam. The Abortion Dilemma: Personal Views on a Public Issue. New York, Plenum Publishing Corporation, 1995.
• Ezell, Lee. The Missing Piece. Extract published in the Los Angeles Times, 26 February, 1992.
• Hayry, Matti. Liberal Utilitarianism and Applied Ethics. New York: Routledge, 1994.
• Hoffmaster, Barry. "Can Ethnography Save the Life of Medical Ethics?" In Winkler, Earl R. and Jerrold R. Coombs, eds., Applied Ethics: A Reader. Blackwell: 1993.
• Sommers, Fred. "The Holocaust and Moral Philosophy." In Sommers, Christina and Sommers, Fred. Vice and Virtue in Everyday Life. (6th Ed.) Belmont: Thomson Wadsworth, 2004.

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