Abortion and the Sanctity of Human Life
Sean Lukanen
Comm/215
Judith Glass
July 22nd, 2013
Abortion and the Sanctity Human of Life
Even though debilitating disease, unwanted responsibility, financial hardship, and emotional instability are not desirable circumstances for a child to be born into, abortion is not a good moral choice because life begins during pregnancy and the unborn deserve a right to live. Whether a person is for or against abortion, both sides fight for one point; protecting the sanctity of human life.
A core issue between pro-life (anti-abortionist) and pro-choice (abortionist) is determining when a human life begins. Science proves that four weeks into development a fetus will have a beating heart, and six weeks from conception it will begin emitting brainwaves (Mayo Clinic Staff, 2012). Heartbeat and brain activity are the same two factors used to determine death, so it makes sense to apply the same principles to determine life. However, a fetus cannot survive outside the womb before 22 weeks gestation, and even then it has a 20% chance to survive (Donovan, 2013). In this sense, the fetus is not considered an independent life form until halfway through pregnancy, making the argument for the beginning of human life difficult to define. Even still; the unborn fetus, if given the chance will become a living being that can one day make choices of his or her own.
Determining rights for the unborn versus those outside the womb is another central dispute. In the United States, every person has a right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. When the Declaration of Independence was written, abortion was not an issue, making it unnecessary to include the unborn in that statement. However, the United States has been practicing abortion since 1978, leaving the current generation to decide what is best. As of now, the unborn do not have any rights because the choice is the responsibility of pregnant women, leaving one to...