Abortion - the Spontaneous or Induced Termination of a Pregnancy

By definition, “abortion” is “the spontaneous or induced termination of a pregnancy after, accompanied by, resulting in, or closely followed by the death of the embryos or fetus.” Abortion has been a controversial issue since the Greek and Roman days. There was the greatest and wisest Greek, known as the Father of Medicine who, stood up and proclaimed his famous Oath: “I will give no deadly medicine to anyone if asked, nor suggest any such counsel; and in like manner I will not give to a woman a pessary to produce abortion,” or “I will neither give a deadly drug to anybody if asked for it, nor will I make a suggestion to this effect. Similarly, I will not give to a woman an abortive remedy.” The Pythagoreans also had the same agreement with the Oath that abortion is not right: “…the embryo was animate from the moment of conception, and abortion meant destruction of a living being.”

There have been many debates over the right to life of the fetus or the right to choose by a woman. Historically, abortion was not legal for the common law of society. In 1900, America had made abortion pretty much legal for its citizens. However, in the mid 60’s, there were some strict changes in the abortion law. Then, the law was passed to legalize the abortion again after the Roe vs. Wade court. After the court decision, the abortion rate in America went from 1.2 million per year before 1973 to 1.4 million a year in 1994. Then the rate went down to 1.31 million in 2000, and it continues to decrease.

Abortion is a very touchy and controversial topic in our society which is divided into two groups: Pro-life vs. Pro-choice. The Pro-life group totally opposes abortion while the Pro-choice group believes that it is a mother’s choice whether or not to have a child. No matter how many times the topic has been arguing, abortion still remains immoral.

In this paper, I shall argue that abortion is an immoral act that a mother can do to her unborn child. First, I shall suggest that abortion is totally wrong, and it is also an act of murder. Second, abortion not only affects the women’s physical health but also their mental health as well. Finally, abortion is also an unethical practice to society.

Abortion is wrong because it’s an act of murder against an innocent child. Some people say that the fetus is not yet a person. They argue that at the first trimester the fetus doesn’t have a brain yet, therefore it doesn’t count as human. However, at eighteen days of the pregnancy, the fetus’s heart begins to beat. At twenty six days, the brain and the spinal cord have already made up most of the embryo. There is also the development of organs. Even at this early stage, there is the distinction of human compared to other species. Think back to when the first time the sperm and egg fertilized in the woman’s ovum, the cell has already made up the human genetic which has 36 chromosomes. By seven weeks, the embryo now moves in response to touch and other outside influences. The baby can kick and move around inside the mother’s mosaic fluid. How can someone say that the baby is not alive? The fetus is a living, future person. It’s wrong to say that abortion is a clean, safe procedure to help the mother’s health and future. Abortion equals murder.

For me, Abortion and Euthanasia are very similar. The baby depends on the mother and attaches to the mother’s placenta. When the doctor aborts the fetus, it’s an act of removing the fetus from the mother’s placenta. The act of the doctor is somewhat like the act of removing the life support machine from an unconscious person. The fetus doesn’t have its own voice. If someone argues about the conscious of a living person, it’s really absurd. One person doesn’t have the right to make the decision for another person who is unconscious. What if the unconscious person or the fetus doesn’t agree with the one who claims to make the decision? So, when a woman obtains an abortion, she’s deadly wrong and immoral.

My second argument against abortion is for both physical and mental health of the mother. Some people might think that abortion is a clean, safe, and fast process. However, abortion has the deadly strong impact on the person who has experienced this procedure. There’re various ways to practice abortion such as: menstrual extraction, suction aspiration, Dilation & Curettage, Dilation & Evacuation, Salt Poisoning (Saline Injection), Prostaglandin Chemical Abortion, Hysterectomy and Partial Birth Abortion. In the hysterectomy method, the mother’s uterus is opened and the baby is lifted out. Unfortunately, most babies are pretty much alive when the doctors remove them. Then, the doctors have to cut the umbilical cord or put them into cold water or left them in the corner and neglect them. The suction method is bloodier than the hysterectomy. In the suction method, the doctor inserts