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Philosophy > Medical ethics > Flashcards

Medical ethics Flashcards

1
Q

What is abortion?

A

The deliberate termination of a human pregnancy.

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2
Q

What was Aristotle’s view on abortion?

A

“Abortion should be done if a family is in excess”

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3
Q

What was Ronald Reagan’s view on abortion?

A

“I’ve noticed that everyone who is for abortion has already been born.”

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4
Q

What is personhood?

A

Personhood is when a foetus is considered a person.

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5
Q

What is taken into account legislatively for deciding personhood and when does it begin in the eyes of the law?

A

Viability, when the foetus is capable ofn living outside of the Womb. From a legal perspective, this is after 24 weeks into development.

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6
Q

How does John Locke describe a Foetus

A

As a Tabula rasa- a blank slate.

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7
Q

What does John Locke define a person as?

A

“Thinking intelligent being that has reason and reflection.”

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8
Q

How is the idea continuity used to critique John Locke’s argument?

A

Like the body, the mind changes. We are very different people from when we were 4 when compared to 14 and even more so at 40.

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9
Q

Why does Peter Signer not define newborns as people?

A

They are not sentient.

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10
Q

Why does Peter Signer believe birth to be a logical point to start personhood despite his beliefs?

A

It’s a universal starting for legality and takes into account issues of differing rates of development.

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11
Q

Where do secular viewpoints of personhood draw there arguments from?

A

Quality of life arguments.

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12
Q

What is dualism?

A

The idea of the separation of the body and soul.

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13
Q

What is ensoulment?

A

A person becomes a person when the soul enters the body.

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14
Q

Why is ensoulment significant from a religious perspective?

A

Ensoulment gains its significance through the idea of the sanctity of life, that every life is precious and sacred as it is God given.

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15
Q

Who believes ensoulment occurs at conception?

A

Catholics (and many other Christians, Some Muslims and Pythagoras.)

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16
Q

When do Stoics believe ensoulment occurs?

A

They believe it happens at birth but only becomes a rationale human one at 14.

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17
Q

`When did Aristotle believe ensoulment occurs?

A

Aristotle believed that the soul only becomes animated (human) at 40 days for a boy and 90 for a girl. Prior to animation it was In a vegetative or animalistic form.

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18
Q

What were the old testament’s teachings on abortion.

A

Women were regarded as property and so those who induced a miscarriage would have to pay the husband of the mother compensation.

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19
Q

What happened in Early Western history if an abortion was carried out post quickening?

A

The mother committed a crime, which was punishable by death.

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20
Q

What was quickening?

A

The early movements, or “fluttering”, in the womb that were said to signify the foetus no longer being just part of the mother.

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21
Q

What happened in 1837 in regards to abortion law.

A

The significance of quickening was removed, but so was the death penalty.

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22
Q

What happened to UK abortion law in 1967 and then in 1990.

A

Abortion could be carried out legally prior to 28 weeks, this was then shortened to 24 weeks.

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23
Q

When can abortions occurs in the UK legally?

A

All the way through term, though post 24 weeks is rare and must be under exceptional circumstances.

24
Q

How many doctors have to consent to performing abortion?

A

2.

25
Q

How old was the earliest premature baby to survive?

A

21 weeks.

26
Q

How are the approaches of Mary Anne Warren and J.J Thompson both similar but different.

A

They are both feminist approaches but only Thompson discusses the personhood of the foetus.

27
Q

What does Mary Anne Warren argue about the personhood of a foetus?

A

“Genetic humanity is not enough to define personhood”

28
Q

Why does Marry Anne Warren believe the right to abortion is a human right?

A

1) Denying women abortion is exploitative, reducing them to cattle.
2) It can condemn them to a life of poverty.

29
Q

What is J.J Thompson’s argument for abortion?

A

The woman’s right to tenancy supersedes the foetuses right to life.

30
Q

What is Natural moral law?

A

A normative ethical approach that teaches that we can know god’s teachings intuitively through observing the natural world.

31
Q

How does natural moral law argue that ensoulment occurs at conception?

A

1) God is the first cause of human life.

2) God is humanity’s telos, purpose.

32
Q

What piece of revealed ethics supports the idea of God as the first cause of human life?

A

“Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you”

33
Q

How can we deduce, through a priori reasoning, that God is our purpose?

A

At every stage of human life, a person is capable of becoming more attuned to life through the worship of God.

34
Q

Aquinas describes primary and secondary precepts, what is the difference?

A

Primary can be known through the natural world.

Secondary can be deduced through application of the primary precepts.

35
Q

What primary precepts can be said to be broken through abortion?

A

“protect the innocent” and “reproduction”.

36
Q

In what regard can “worshiping God”, a primary precept, also be seen as being broken through the act of abortion.

A

If we establish all human life as sacred, through the sanctity of life, abortion would be ignoring this.

37
Q

How does a NML being a deontological allow for abortion in extreme cases?

A

Through the Docterine of double effect. As NML is concerned with the nature of the action and not its consequence, if the purpose is to save the mother’s life, then abortion can be seen as permitted.

38
Q

Where is it important to look when we decide the morality of abortion, according to virtue ethics?

A

1) The mother.
2) The doctors.
3) Wider society.

39
Q

What is Virtue ethics?

A

A brand of normative ethics concerned that argues morality comes not from the action or its consequence but through the individual itself and their context in society.

40
Q

What does Aristotlean virtue ethics argue in regards to mothers and abortion?

A

“We consider adolescents ought to be modest because living under the sway feelings they often make mistakes.” Therefore it is more acceptable for young mothers to abort.

41
Q

What does virtue ethics fear about abortion in terms of wider society?

A

It could create a “culture of death” and desensitize us to the loss of life in all aspects of society.

42
Q

How would a virtue ethicist assess the morality of the doctor, in regards to abortion.

A

They would asses whether the doctor’s decision was due to it being the morally right thing or if it were down to any biases.

43
Q

What is revealed ethics?

A

Revealed ethics are the ethical approaches taught within the bible/other holy books.

44
Q

What pieces of revealed ethics would Strong sanctity of life based Christians use as evidence against abortion?

A

1) “Thou shalt not kill.”

2) “be fruitful and multiply.”

45
Q

Where would Situation ethicists and other liberal Christians get evidence to suggest abortion can be acceptable?

A

The new testament and the teachings of Jesus.

46
Q

What does Fletcher argue in the teachings of Jesus teach that can be used in favour of abortion.

A

Situation ethics and the idea of agape love. Abortion is permissible in situations where it is “the most loving thing to do.”

47
Q

How can natural moral law be used to justify rape?

A

It can lead to new life, fulfilling the primary precept of “reproduce”.

48
Q

Case Study: Paraguay.

A

An 11 year old was denied an abortion despite being raped by her Step father.

49
Q

Case Study: R vs Bourne.

A

A court decided in favour of performing an abortion on a 14 year old rape victim to preserve her mental health. This was significant in changing UK law.

50
Q

False Case Study: Lana

A

Feminist blogger “Lana” had reportedly received an abortion because she found out the sex of the child would be a boy.

51
Q

Case Study: India

A

Recently a 10 year old, rape victim was allowed to receive an despite passing India’s legal limit of 20 weeks. Activist were quick to point out rape victims are slower to report pregnancies.

The perpetrator was her stepfather.

52
Q

Case study: Northern Ireland.

A

In 2012 a woman died of a septic miscarriage due to being denied an abortion.

53
Q

What did Fletcher say “Good” was?

A

“Only one thing is good, namely love, nothing else at all.”

54
Q

What was Noam Chomsky’s view on abortion?

A

To paraphrase, “Neither biology nor holy books can solve the debate of abortion. These are matters of human concern that have to be discussed seriously, looking at a wide array of ethical approaches.”

55
Q

Although proven to be most probably fake, how is the case of “Lana” significant?

A

The fact that it was believed so readily suggests that the rights of women and their right to bodily autonomy isn’t enough on it’s own in regards to abortion.

56
Q

What was John Paul II’s view on abortion?

A

It is the “rejection of divine law and moral principle.”

Philosophy (6 decks)

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