The Fetal Position: A Rational Approach to the Abortion Issue - Softcover

Meyers, Chris

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1591027683 ISBN 13: 9781591027683

Verlag: Prometheus Books, 2010

Inhaltsangabe

In this unique approach to one of the most contentious and emotionally charged issues of our day, the author argues that philosophy provides the ideal neutral forum for considering the soundness of both sides of the abortion debate. Unlike most books on abortion, this one takes neither a pro-life nor a pro-choice stance. Rather, using philosophical methodology, the author carefully scrutinizes the commonly voiced arguments for and against abortion with the aim of assessing them from a position that is as unbiased as possible. The author argues that since philosophy involves questioning our most basic assumptions and does not assume any one particular worldview, it is best equipped to provide objective clarity to the debate. The book considers all the hot-button issues, including:

-What is life? Theories of the soul vs. the naturalistic, biological concept of life
-The implications of the fact that life begins at conception
-Responsibility and how each side of the debate defines the term differently
-The status of the fetus as a potential person
-The application of the Golden Rule to the debate
-The question of the woman’s bodily integrity vs. the fetus’s right to life
-Assessing the consequences of abortion (with reference to utilitarianism)
-How our attitudes on abortion reflect our character (with reference to virtue ethics)

Whether you are pro-life or pro-choice, and especially if you are undecided, this thoughtful, clearly presented treatment of an important, controversial topic will prove enlightening.

Über diesen Titel

Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

Chris Meyers (Hattiesburg, MS) holds a doctorate in philosophy from Loyola University, Chicago, and is an assistant professor in the Department of Philosophy and Religion at the University of Southern Mississippi. He has published articles in ethical theory and applied ethics in Philosophical Studies, Journal of Social Philosophy, and Social Theory & Practice, among other journals.

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THE FETAL POSITION

A RATIONAL APPROACH TO THE ABORTION ISSUEBy CHRIS MEYERS

Prometheus Books

Copyright © 2010 Chris Meyers
All right reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-59102-768-3

Contents

Preface..................................................................7Acknowledgments..........................................................9Introduction.............................................................11Chapter 1. Philosophy to the Rescue!.....................................23Chapter 2. What Is the Soul?.............................................47Chapter 3. Life Begins at Conception—So What?......................69Chapter 4. Abnormal Human Development....................................83Chapter 5. Responsibility................................................103Chapter 6. The Potentiality Argument.....................................121Chapter 7. The Golden Rule Argument against Abortion.....................139Chapter 8. Rights of the Pregnant Woman..................................159Chapter 9. Consequences..................................................181Chapter 10. Virtue.......................................................201Index....................................................................213

Chapter One

PHILOSOPHY TO THE RESCUE!

Part of the reason, I suspect, that little progress has been made toward reaching any kind of consensus about the morality of abortion is the lack of willingness on the part of those with passionately held opinions to seriously engage in honest debate. Some people, on both sides of the issue, dogmatically assert their views without considering fairly the arguments for the contrary position. These people are only encouraged by certain politicians who pander to their base for support of their political careers.

Perhaps, to be more charitable, some people hold their views dogmatically because they do not realize that it is possible to present evidence for and against moral positions and to use rational thinking to determine the truth of the matter. They can hardly be blamed for being unaware of this kind of critical thinking, for there are so few examples to be found in public discourse today. This is where philosophy can, and I believe must, come to the rescue. It can provide a forum for debating such seemingly intractable issues. This is not to say that we will, in this short book, determine once and for all the correct view to which everyone will immediately agree. But philosophy can provide the means for getting some real discussion started in a fruitful direction.

WHAT IS PHILOSOPHY?

Before addressing exactly how philosophy can assist us in this debate, we should first ask, "What is philosophy?" The answer will enable us to see how philosophy can help us resolve (or at least openly debate) the abortion issue. This question is not an easy one to answer. Many philosophers would even disagree over the correct characterization of what it is they do. This may seem very odd to nonphilosophers, but the difficulty of saying exactly what philosophy is actually serves as an illustration of what philosophers do and what philosophy is about.

In philosophy, everything is open to questioning—even of what philosophy itself is or should be. This is not the case in other fields. In physics, for example, there is virtually unanimous agreement as to what physics is and what physicists should be studying. Physics is the study of the most basic constituents of the physical world—in other words, matter and energy—and the mathematically describable laws governing their interactions in space (or something like that). This definition forms the foundation for all physics and so cannot be questioned, at least not within physics itself. To question whether observation and experimentation are reliable indicators of reality, or whether matter exists independently of our perceiving it, is not to ask scientific questions but philosophical questions.

Once, when I was a young college student first studying philosophy, I was having dinner with my then girlfriend's family when her father, who was a physicist, asked me, "What exactly is philosophy anyway?" To my utter embarrassment, I was unable to give any more than the sketchiest of answers. I hemmed and hawed and made some vague and lofty comment about the "search for truth." Of course, that is correct as far as it goes, but it does not go nearly far enough. Philosophy is the search for truth, but that is inadequate as a definition. After all, the sciences are also involved with the search for truth, as are history and math. That philosophers seek the truth does not distinguish philosophy from a large number of other academic and scientific pursuits. Yet it is nevertheless an important thing to remember because it does help to distinguish philosophy from literature and poetry, which are concerned more with meaning, rhetoric, and beauty than with truth. (No one criticizes a poem or novel because it depicts things that did not really happen.) Remembering that philosophers are seeking truth might help dispel any misconceptions based on stereotypes of philosophers sitting around thinking "deep thoughts," daydreaming about unknowable things, or pontificating about the meaning of life.

How does philosophy differ from other truth-seeking endeavors? Many areas of inquiry are identifiable not so much by their methods (which they may share with other fields) but by their subject matter. For example, biology is the scientific study of living organisms, and psychology is the study of human behavior. Mathematics studies numbers and their relations, while history studies past human events. There is, however, no particular domain that sets philosophy apart from other fields. We cannot say, "He studies X? Then he must be a philosopher!" Philosophy can be about anything. There is philosophy of science, philosophy of mind, philosophy of history, and so on.

One thing that does distinguish philosophy from other fields is that it asks more fundamental questions, questions that cannot be decided by observation. While physicists study the most basic constituents of matter and energy through experiment and observation, philosophers ask, "What is real?" and "What can we know?" This is the first part of our definition of philosophy: it is critical thinking about the most fundamental questions. How does philosophy of science differ from science? Philosophy of science questions the very foundations of science, asking questions about the meaning of scientific statements as well as the source (and degree of certainty) of scientific understanding. How does philosophy of mind differ from psychology? Psychology studies (among other things) human behavior and mental states such as beliefs and emotions, while philosophy of mind asks what are these beliefs and emotions. Are they, for example, physical brain states? Functional dispositions that mediate between perceptual input and behavioral output? Something independent of physical matter?

Another way philosophy differs from other fields of study is in its methods. Observation is the primary method of inquiry in science. The scientist formulates a hypothesis, makes a prediction based on the theory being tested, and then performs a critical experiment, if possible. The most important part is the last part. The scientist must observe the outcome and compare it with the predictions. With some theories, such as physical anthropology, experimenting is not...

Details zur Ausgabe

• Verlag: Prometheus Books
• Erscheinungsdatum: 2010
• Sprache: Englisch
• ISBN 10: 1591027683
• ISBN 13: 9781591027683
• Einband: Taschenbuch
• Auflage: 1
• Anzahl der Seiten: 216
• Kontakt zum Hersteller: Nicht verfügbar
• Verantwortliche Person: Simon and Schuster Netherlands BV; info@simonandschuster.nl; ; Herculesplein 96; Utrecht; 3584 AA; Niederlande