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Religious Studies: Ethics > 1C: Application of ANL to Abortion and Voluntary Euthanasia > Flashcards

1C: Application of ANL to Abortion and Voluntary Euthanasia Flashcards

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1
Q

What is abortion?

A

deliberate termination of a pregnancy

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2
Q

What is voluntary euthanasia?

A

where a person’s life is ended deliberately and painlessly at their request.

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3
Q

Biologically, when does human life begin?

A

conception

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4
Q

What is the Offences Against the Person Act (1861)?

A

abortion declared a criminal act

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5
Q

What is the Infant Preservation Act (1929)?

A

termination was allowed if it preserved the mothers life

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6
Q

What was the Abortion Act (1967)?

A

2 doctors must agree that an abortion is necessary. deemed necessary if:
1. woman’s physical health is threaten by having the baby
2. high risk of baby being handicapped

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7
Q

What is the Embryology Act (1990)?

A

abortion is not considered a criminal act if it is performed by a registered practitioner and two medical practitioners have agreed continuation of the pregnancy would be risky. legal limit reduced from 28 weeks to 24 weeks

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8
Q

What is the sanctity of life?

A

the belief that life is sacred because it is god given

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9
Q

Name 2 philosophers who have offered an alternative approach to the sanctity of life

A

Kant and Singer

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10
Q

What is Kant’s idea of the sanctity of life?

A

it is a non relgious perspective based on purely ethical grounds

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11
Q

What is Singer’s idea of the sanctity of life?

A

shift from talking about the sanctity of life towards a more universal discussion about the value of life

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12
Q

What are two key issues raised in the abortion debate?

A
  1. is abortion murder?
  2. at what point can an embryo be considered a human?
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13
Q

What is ensoulment?

A

when the soul enters the body, usually believed by RCs

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14
Q

What does Vardy suggest makes it hard to agree when ‘personhood’ status is attained?

A

relational factors - there are different interpretations or understandings of the same words. until accurate definitions of key terms are agreed, the stage of personhood can never be universal

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15
Q

Which is the main primary precept that is broken in the case of abortion?

A

preserve innocent life

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16
Q

Why would the act of abortion be seen as inherently evil to someone following ANL?

A

breaks the primary precept of preserving innocent life - intentional and direct killing of an innocent human being

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17
Q

Why might Natural Law view birth as the start of human life?

A

they dont

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18
Q

What do Natural Law followers believe about the point of viability?

A
  • legally it is 24 weeks, but natural law pro life followers challenge the legality of this
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19
Q

What do Natural Law followers believe about the quickening (when the ‘child’ is first felt to move)?

A

ANL went for the 40-80 day stage (quickening) as the beginning of life. Natural Law pro choice groups use this to demonstrate inconsistency within natural law

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20
Q

What do natural law followers believe about the point of potential (fertilisation)?

A
  • official teaching of RC magisterium, hence the rejection of IVF foetal reduction as ‘selective abortion’
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21
Q

What do Natural Law followers believe about ensoulment?

A

RC magisterium see this as the same point as fertilisation, a different view taken from Aquinas

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22
Q

How can teleology be applied to abortion?

A
  • Natural Law asks what our purpose is as humans
  • Aquinas says it is to fulfill the purpose for which our creator made us (eternal purpose)
  • our purpose is to be in heaven with god (beatific vision)
  • to have an abortion ‘frustrates’ this person
  • ANL assumes that it is for god to decide when a person dies and joins him, not for themselves to decide
  • likewise in abortion, it is not for anyone else to decide when the foetus can attain the beatific vision
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23
Q

How can final cause be applied to abortion?

A
  • efficient cause - what gets things done
  • final cause - purpose of a thing. that which should guide all our moral choices.
  • our final cause is beatific vision and the final cause of sex is procreation
  • abortion is therefore something with frustrates the purpose of sex, thus it is wrong
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24
Q

How can the four levels of law be applied to abortion?

A
  • highest of which is eternal law, this is an expression of god’s purpose
  • divine law may be relevant to abortion debate in 10 commandments- do not commit murder
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25
Q

How can reason be applied to abortion?

A
  • morality is not based on following commands from bible but on following rules discovered through reason
  • reason should not contradict scripture or vice versa
  • Aquinas argued it is obvious to reason we should preserve life and defend the innocent, so right use of reason suggests abortion is wrong
26
Q

How can deontology be applied to abortion?

A
  • morality is about doing your duty, obligation to follow rules and do right actions
  • natural law produces absolute moral rules knowable through reason - primary precepts. rules that must be obeyed
  • this makes morality straightforward and uncomplicated
  • humans should be able to work out what human laws to make in order to uphold primary precepts in particular circumstances
  • RCC taught it is a duty to not have abortion or permit it
27
Q

How can primary precepts be applied to abortion?

A
  • preserve and defend innocent life
  • primary purpose of human existence is preservation of life, so killing the unborn is a grave wrongdoing equivalent to murder given that some define a foetus as a human being
  • an absolute moral rule, so in ANL abortion is always wrong
  • abortion also violates primary precept of reproduction
  • RC assumption is the primary purpose of sex is reproduction so abortion clearly breaks the primary precept by terminating a pregnancy
28
Q

How can secondary precepts be applied to abortion?

A
  • primary precepts ‘preserve innocent life’ gives us the secondary precept ‘do not abort’.
29
Q

How can the 7 virtues be applied to abortion?

A
  • fortitude - imagine a woman pregnant due to rape who wants to follow ANL and refuse abortion. she would need fortitude
  • justice - thinking about the interests of the developing foetus AND the pregnant woman
  • prudence in decision making is also needed
30
Q

How can real and apparent goods be applied to abortion?

A
  • Aquinas would say it is an apparent good if someone feels that their reason tells them there is a good reason to end pregnancy to save a woman’s emotional distress
  • it diminishes their human purpose if they are unable to reach the beatific vision according to god’s purpose
  • RCC may point to fortitude which a suffering individual may be able to develop and use to help them reach BV
31
Q

How can interior and exterior acts be applied to abortion?

A
  • your intention for abortion might be good - to end a woman’s suffering if she’s pregnant as a result of rape, but this is only the interior act
  • if the exterior act is to deliberately end the person’s (foetus) life, then it is a bad act and so the act is unacceptable in natural law even if the intention is to relieve suffering
  • abortion is a deliberate act therefore it is a bad interior act as well as a bad exterior one
32
Q

How can the synderesis rule be applied to abortion?

A
  • do good and avoid evil
  • ANL is an absolutist approach to ethics
  • it assumes there are such things as good and evil acts so it always sees abortion as an evil act and one that should be avoided
33
Q

A real example you could use for evaluation?

A

woman in Ireland who died of septicaemia after being denied an abortion. it was denied because ireland is a “catholic country” and the foetus had a heartbeat

34
Q

A quote from Mackie about abortion

A

“the unborn child is already a human being […] abortion is therefore murder”

35
Q

What is euthanasia?

A

assisting in the death of a person suffering from an incurable disease

36
Q

What year was suicide decriminalised?

A
  1. however it was still explicit that to aid/assist suicide was still a crime
37
Q

What is active euthanasia?

A

doing something to deliberately bring about death (same as voluntary euthanasia)

38
Q

What problem arises in regards to physical end of life to someone in a coma?

A

they are being kept alive artificially and still demonstrating signs of consciousness

39
Q

Why might someone be denied of refusing treatment?

A

they lack the mental capacity or competency to make such a decision

40
Q

Are patients allowed by law to refuse treatment even if they know the consequence is death?

A

Yes

41
Q

Is consciously taking medication which has a consequence of a quick and less painful death seen as acceptable?

A

No

42
Q

What are some arguments against bringing in a law to allow euthanasia?

A
  • can the law be effectively monitored?
  • would it be in the best interests of society?
  • would it be workable?
43
Q

What primary precept is most associated with euthanasia?

A

preserve innocent life

44
Q

What is the sanctity of life?

A

life is sacred

45
Q

Why does natural law teach that humans are special and should be protected?

A

because we are something that is above and beyond animals (therefore a life is morally unacceptable)

46
Q

How does the catechism of the Catholic church define euthanasia?

A

an act or omission which, of itself or by intention caused the death of handicapped, sick or dying”

47
Q

Why might administering drugs to end a life be seen as acceptable under natural law?

A

to control the pain of a terminally ill patient - even if it was foreseen the drugs would shorten the patients life
- the intention was to bring relief to the pain, not kill the person - double effect

48
Q

How can definite the ‘end of life’ be problematic?

A

a physical end of life can be determined medically. but what about some in a coma? challenges the definition of life and whether a physical definition suffices

49
Q

Under UK law what rights do dying people have in relation to their treatment?

A

refuse treatment, but they don’t have a right to end their life by administering a different course of medication

50
Q

How do these rights lead to an ‘uncomfortable inconsistency’?

A

consciously refusing treatment knowing the consequence is death is acceptable - but consciously willing medication of which the consequence is also death, only sooner and with less pain is seen as unacceptable

51
Q

How might teleology be applied to euthanasia?

A
  • Aquinas says our purpose (telos) is the beatific vision
  • euthanasia does not fulfill this purpose
  • it is for god to decide when someone dies and goes to be with him, not the person themselves
52
Q

How might efficient and final causes be applied to euthanasia?

A
  • final cause guides all our moral choices
  • our final cause is beatific vision
  • Catholic catechism - it would be an ‘error of judgement’ to think it would be okay to cause death to end suffering (even if they thought it would speed up the entry to BV)
53
Q

How might the four levels of law be applied to euthanasia?

A

Divine law: 10 commandments “do not murder”, RC would regard euthanasia as self murder/assisted suicide

54
Q

How might reason be applied to euthanasia?

A
  • reason should not contradict scripture or vice versa
  • Aquinas argued we should preserve life and defend the innocent
  • right use of reason suggests euthanasia is wrong because it actively takes a persons life
55
Q

How might deontology be applied to euthanasia?

A
  • NL produces absolute moral rules knowable through reason (primary precepts)
  • these rules must be obeyed
  • humans should be able to work out what humans laws to make in order to uphold primary precepts in particular circumstances
  • RCC teaches it is a duty to not seek/permit voluntary euthanasia
56
Q

How might the primary precepts be applied to euthanasia?

A
  • preserve innocent life: it is wrong to practice active euthanasia
  • order society: challenges morality of euthanasia.
57
Q

How might the secondary precepts be applied to euthanasia?

A

Primary precept “preserve innocent life” gives us secondary precept “do not commit active euthanasia”. Catholic catechism “whatever it’s motives and means […] it is morally unacceptable”

58
Q

How might the 7 virtues be applied to euthanasia?

A
  • Fortitude: a person in pain with a terminal illness who wants to follow ANL and does not approve euthanasia would need fortitude
  • Justice: the interests of the dying person and their dignity in the face of societal attitudes which value health & wealth rather than spiritual values
59
Q

How might real and apparent goods be applied to euthanasia?

A
  • people may feel their reason tells them there is a good reason to end the life of a terminally ill person to end their suffering
  • Aquinas would say this is only an apparent good, not a right use of reason
  • diminishes human purpose if they are unable to reach BV
60
Q

How might interior and exterior acts be applied to euthanasia?

A
  • intention might be good with euthanasia- to end a persons suffering, but this is only INTERIOR act
  • if the exterior act is to deliberately end life, then it is a bad act and overall unacceptable in NL, even if the intention is to relieve suffering
61
Q

How might the synderesis rule be applied to euthanasia?

A
  • ANL is an absolutist approach to ethics, so it assumed there are such things as good and evil acts
  • it always sees euthanasia as an evil act and one that should be avoided

Religious Studies: Ethics (20 decks)

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