Medical ethics Flashcards
Dignitas personae
human cloning could lead to “biological slavery”
Samuel Butler
humans are more complex than biology at present allows for
Jeremy Lent
‘one species, genetically and technologically enhanced, exploring entirely new ways of being human; the other species, genetically akin to us, barely surviving within its collapsed infrastructure.’
Lucassen’s reply to GE being unnatural (2)
‘it would be unnatural not to intervene with nature’
‘as moral agents, there are many natural desires which human beings should not conform to’
Bernard Hoose
GE should be banned until present knowledge has extended further; ban isn’t permanent as it needs to be renewed in light of our increasing knowledge.
Michael Tooley
rights are centred around personhood, which the foetus does not possess
Pope Benedict XVI on life
‘from the moment of conception, life must be guarded with the greatest care’
–> bc ensoulment begins at conception
How does Christian ethics contradict itself in abortion
book of exodus implies a different moral status for the foetus - if a woman does a baby in the womb, husband is financially compensated
Genesis 1:27
personhood begins at moment of conception and shouldn’t be aborted by virtue of the imago Dei of the human being
Gillespie
there is no morally relevant milestone in the biological process of development
Pope John Paul II
‘the unborn human being’s right to live is one of the inalienable human rights’
Singer’s analogy on the potential of the foetus
a prince is a potential king but shouldn’t be treated as king
Church of England on the mother’s rights
recognises her feelings and wishes but prioritises preservation of life
Judith Jarvis Thomson
sickly violinist;
the right to live is not inclusive of the right to be given the means necessary for survival
hare
tries to bridge the gap between foetuses and persons by saying that most of us would have liked not to have been killed as foetuses
assisted suicide illegal
Suicide act 1961
james rachels
from a utilitarian point of view, withholding treatment leads to more pain and is more immoral than an active killing
example of a child in a bath: Smith arranges that he drowns, Jones doesn’t stop him from drowning
Diane Pretty
the right to life includes the right to choose your own death
John Hardwig
individual is not the only person affected by decisions of whether to live or die
Foot
individuals can be in error about whether their lives are worth living
christian perspective on euthanasia
weakens society’s respect for the sanctity of life
The RCC on abortion, Donum Vitae (Gift of Life, 1987)
‘God alone is the Lord of life fro its beginning until its end: no one can under any circumstances claim from himself the right directly to destroy an innocent human being’
Pope John Paul II on abortion
‘the unborn human being’s right to live is one of the inalienable human rights’
Quote RM Hare on abortion (Kantian)
‘A Kantian approach to ethics asks us to travel back in time and speak to our mother before she consdiers aborting us’
What is a therapeutic abortion?
an abortion carried out in order to protect the life or health of the mother e.g. in the case of an ectopic pregnancy
What is the Primitive Streak?
After 14 days of gestation, the primitive streak appears, and with it the basic capacity to register pain
Feminist advocate who opposed abortion on women rights ground?
Elizabeth Cady Stanton argued against abortion one rounds that it was used as a tool by men to exploit women and avoid their responsibilities in supporting their family.
What does Rosalind Hursthouse argue?
in Beginning Lives she argues that concentrating on women’s rights alone may obscure the issue that abortion may be morally wrong
What does Beverley Harrison argue?
that the women’s decision should be paramount and prohibiting abortion is a way used by men to ‘keep them in their place’ so abortion is necessary for female emancipation
When does Augustine say ensoulment occurs?
46 days
When does Aquinas say ensoulment occurs?
40 days for boys and 90 days for girls
Mary Anne Warren on personhood
‘birth, rather than some earlier point, marks the beginning of true moral status’
How does Mary Anne Warren argue against potentiality? (the idea that a foetus is a potential person)
‘if a foetus is a potential person, then so is an unfertilised human ovum with enough viable spermatozoa to achieve fertilisation: yet few would seriously suggest that these living human entities should have full and equal moral status’
What does John Gallagher argue
change is too gradual; there is no single point when we can say its a person
Psalm quote that shows relationship starts before moment of conception
Psalm 139:13 ‘for you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb’
What is the significance of the word ‘blephos’
the word blephos (‘infant’) is used for child before and after birth so God doesn’t seem to discriminate
bible quotes that support idea of foetus as person
Jeremiah 1:5 (I formed you in the womb)
Psalms 139:13 (‘you knit me together in my mother’s womb)
Exodus 20:13
‘You shall not commit murder’
Job 1:21
‘The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away’
Rowan Williams quote euthanasia
‘every life in every imaginable situation is infinitely precious in the sight of God’
Daniel Maguire on euthanasia
proportionalist, takes a revisionist view. Euthanasia is the less of two evils; bc death is a pre-moral evil, its not an intrinsic evil to shorten the life of someone.
