Abstract
Chapter 1 Introduction
4.5: Virtue Ethics and the Problem of Abortion
It is already found that a definite solution of the problem of abortion could be given neither by utilitarianism nor by the de-ontology of Kant. That is why in this chapter the issue of abortion has been tried to discuss from a moral perspective, mostly from the perspective of virtue ethics. This chapter is an illustration of some major factors of abortion with instrumentalists of virtue ethical theory.
Rosalind Hursthouse in her article “Virtue Theory and Abortion” writes that the rights of the mother, the foetus, and technological or medical knowledge are largely irrelevant. While she grants that it's possible that a woman having an abortion might be acting virtuously in doing so, she suggests that the reasons that people offer in support of their acts are not virtuous at all. A desire for freedom in this respect is called by her to be selfishness. Even when circumstances make abortion the right thing to do, she argues that this is often a sign of a severely flawed environment. In other words, Hursthouse maintains that if someone tries to
present justification in favour of abortion, it may be so because of unvirtuous participation is always present in the person.70
The point of emulating the virtuous agent is that acting morally calls for moral wisdom, which is acquired through experience, and is not typically found in youths who have had little life experience. Hursthouse seeks to apply an Aristotelian approach to virtue theory to the morality of abortion. Clarifying her position in this regard ,that she is not attempting to argue that a virtue theory approach is the correct approach to the issue, Hursthouse but rather that she is simply trying to show how a virtue theorist would approach the topic.
Traditionally, the ethics of abortion focuses on The status of the foetus, and its human- person marginality, and on matters related to conflict of rights , whether the mother’s right is central or that of the foetus’s. A virtue theory approach eliminates each of these issues as
“fundamentally irrelevant” because a woman’s virtuous or vicious act is not tied with some such considerations whether or not women have total and complete rights to their bodies .What is counted as virtue or vice is how selfish or mean or how generous and kind one is.71
Since an aborting mother may act virtuously and also viciously, if the act is such that, or childrearing will conflict with the woman’s physical health or physically demanding job, it may not be condemned as a selfish act on her part. Circumstances may have forced the aborting mother to act that way but her virtue as a mother and her wish to be a responsible mother, if at all, makes her still an eligible candidate for the ‘virtuous mother category.
70 Rosalind Hursthouse, (1999) “Virtue Theory and Abortion”, Philosophy and Public Affairs.
71 ibid
Because what she intends to do is lead a good life, as per her valuations of what a good life means to her, that must keep room for security of all kinds, physical, emotional, financial and so on, and her decision to abort may be conducive to eudemonia only.
However, she has also suggested that to transform a vice into a virtue even an act like abortion needs to be justified on virtuous grounds. While she has granted that it's possible that a woman having an abortion might be acting virtuously in doing so, but there is no single right answer, but a variety of particular answers. In the same essay, Rosalind Hursthouse also has suggested that most reasons people give for having them are not virtuous at all. Even when circumstances make abortion the right thing to do, she argues that this is often a sign of a severely flawed environment. She further mentions that
"For, by virtue of the fact that a human life has been cut short, some evil has probably been brought about, and that circumstances make the decision to bring about some evil the right decision will be a ground for guilt if getting into those circumstances in the first place itself manifested a flaw in character."72
So she has a nuanced view. It's possible that abortion is not a vice in all circumstances, but it is mostly a sign of vice rather than virtue.
According to virtue ethics killing cannot be regarded to be a virtuous act. So far as the abortion is concerned, it is also the killing of a foetus. According to virtue ethics abortion is
wrong, although it is not easy to say anything about the problem of abortion just in one line.
Separate factors of abortion are to be study separately.
4.5.1: Pregnancy Out of Rape:
When we discuss the pregnancy out of rape, a strong point comes from virtue ethical perspective is that rape itself is an unvirtuous act. But killing of an innocent child is also unvirtuous. If the abortion is to be done in the fear of the society, than that process cannot be called virtuous because here even society is forcing the woman to do something which is not virtuous. Whatever may be the cause of pregnancy, it may be the case that a woman wants to become mother. Motherhood is something which is based on some virtues like love and care.
But it may be the case that a girl is a minor and she is not of good health to deliver the child.
Another important point, which can be noted here, is that if a child out of rape is accepted than there is a possibility of turning a vice into a virtue and the society will witness a rise in crimes of the nature. Sometimes some steps are to be taken for the maintenance of peace in the society, but these steps cannot be regarded to be unvirtuous. Regarding pregnancies caused in this kind of cases, since woman’s eudemonia would be more enhanced via a wisely chosen voluntary and planned pregnancy, than by one foisted on her against her choices, especially by a rapist. Virtue theory would be in a position to recommend an abortion as virtuous act in the vast majority of these cases.
4.5.2: Virtue Ethics and Sex-selective Abortion:
Sex-selective abortion is something which is found to be practiced in many places. With the modern ultrasound machines sex-determination of the foetus becomes very easy. In many cases if the couples find foetus to be a female, they just abort it. The reasons behind it is been already discussed in the previous chapter. But in the name of discriminating male-female foetuses, if a particular foetus is killed, then it is nothing other than a crime. This action is totally unvirtuous and under no conditions it can be accepted. It is a very sad thing that in that is strange that even in the so-called modern society women are considered to be second class humans as she is used as a commodity. In India dowry is a main reason, because of which sex-selective abortion is practiced. Patriarchal social set up is also a reason behind it.
According to virtue ethics man and woman are equal. So for the sake of some hopeless social norms, if a female foetus is to be aborted, then it is totally an unvirtuous act. Craze for the male-heir is something which decreases the status of the girl child in the society. If we analyse this point from virtue ethical standpoint, then it is found that it is totally unvirtuous.
4.5.3: Poor Health Condition of the Foetus:
One important factor that was already discussed much is abortion due to the poor health condition of the foetus. So sometimes it may happen that the foetus is found to be defective.
Ultrasound shows that if the child will be allowed to born in that condition, than it would be turned out to be either physically or mentally defective and the child born will have to suffer from that defect for the whole lifetime. In this respect the pro-abortionists have argued that
foetus may develop some non-life-threatening abnormalities like Down syndrome, or autism, or milder forms of spina bifida. The anti abortionists also have raised issues that by justifying abortion there is a probability to open door for more serious crimes of some nature. For example one may suddenly identify all disabled people as other than normal .But we come across many physically handicapped persons in the world, who are happy with their lives and live their lives with full dignity. Other people feel sorry and pity for them, but not they may.
So how does one decide before hand that abortion is a virtuous act?
4.5.4: Poor Health Condition of the Mother:
In this case there is a less chance of having eudemonic life for the mother and the baby. A wise mother, by analyzing all these may decide to take the help of abortion in these cases. In these kinds of abortion, virtue ethics may also support abortion. Everything has to be decided on a case-by-case approach rather than by reference to strict principles, for virtuous mean will shift relative to each different situation.
In tubal pregnancy if the help of abortion will not take, then both mother and the foetus will die. In this kind of cases virtue ethics give an unequivocal answer. Abortion is definitely the only wise and eudemonic option. Again in those cases where a pregnant woman, who is under age and have barely out of childhood herself, it is likely that virtue ethics would advice the decision-makers to go for abortion. If the mother is not too young (say, fifteen), and if she is relatively mature, has a supportive partner and family, and wants the baby, then perhaps the wise thing to do, the eudemonic thing, is not to abort. But in these kinds of cases both
legal and physical condition of the mother can create problem. So in this kind of cases, it is very difficult to find out the virtuous act.