r/LNATpractice

My answer: Abortions should only be permitted in certain circumstances.

Abortion can be defined as the terminating a pregnancy. The debate about when it should and should not be allowed is a very prominent debate in our society; however, I personally believe that abortion should indeed only be permitted, by the government, in certain circumstances. In this essay I will cover some of these circumstances and establish why abortion should not be allowed outside of these circumstances.

Firstly, many individuals who are pro-abortion argue that limiting when a mother can abort her foetus goes against her freedom of choice and forcing the individual to give birth may give rise to the mother not caring for her child. This argument holds some weight, but it relies on the assumption that the individual did not choose to partake in sexual intercours.  If they did choose, are they being stripped of their freedom of choice and individual autonomy? The answer is that they are not. Pregnancy is a risk of sexual intercourse, and a consenting adult should be aware of this fact. If you willingly partake in an activity you are also consenting to the risk because of the idea that if you knew there was a risk and still accepted to take that risk you did in-fact consent to it. However, on the point that it may cause the mother to not raise the child happily and therefore increasing the odds of a negligent parent it can be argued that abortion should also be permitted in this case. Although, this is a logical argument it does not comprehend the idea that this is not a guarantee and that you are depriving a human of life based on an assumption that the mother may not want to raise the child. Furthermore, just because a mother does not want to raise a child it does not mean the father would also not want to, nor does it acknowledge the idea that a child can be put up for adoption in cases where the assumption becomes real.

On the other hand, in circumstances where it puts the life of the mother in danger to give birth I would argue it is logical to permit abortion. It is indeed, going against a principle I afore mentioned of the right of life of the foetus, but a mother is also a human. A potential mother has a family, friends, a job, and a community - aspects of life the foetus is yet to experience. It is unfortunate to sacrifice the foetus for the mother, but not doing so does not only affect the mother but everyone she was close with or knew. Although, the death of the foetus may make the immediate family feel great pain because of their loss, but many would still choose the mother over it due to the idea that a great connection already exists with the mother, but the foetus is yet to have any connections themselves. The government should allow this circumstance because of the established idea above.

Another circumstance where I think the government should permit abortion is when the foetus may develop or has developed a disability that will impair their whole life. Once again this does indeed go against the established idea that abortion is depriving a child of a life, but we need to consider whether or not the parent can sustain it and whether the child could enjoy or thrive in it. Disabled children, in general, often have a much worse quality-of-life than someone who is able and their upbringing requires more care and therefore more financial needs for the parents to provide for. Raising a normal child in itself is costly and that cost raises exponentially for  a disabled one. Unlike, a mother not wanting to raise a child properly or with care due to personal choice, in this case it is the idea that the parents physically cannot sustain to provide them with special education, care, or treatments. This combined with the idea that a disabled child would likely to be unable to do many things a normal child can their quality-of-life would be one that is unfulfilling. This would not only be unfair for the parents who may struggle financially but also the child who may suffer physical pain or psychological pain due to their disability and how others treat them.

In conclusion, although I did not cover all of the permitted circumstances, abortion is not something a mother can take whenever they want to. It should instead be permitted in circumstances of need rather than just a want. I RAN OUT OF SPACE FOR A PROPER CONCLUSION.