Right to life Flashcards
Where does life legally begin in the UK?
At birth, but Abortion law protects a foetus after 24 weeks (except in extreme cases), when the foetus becomes viable.
When does life end?
There is no legal definition of death in the UK, but a doctor will certify someone as dead if:
There are no spontaneous movements.
There is no respiratory effort.
There are no heart sounds or palpable pulses.
There is an absence of reflexes including corneal, gag and vestibulo- ocular reflexes (spinal reflexes may persist for a time).
The pupils are fixed and dilated.
When is it legally acceptable to kill someone?
There are many circumstances when it is legally acceptable to kill someone - in a war, in self defence (in some cases), in defending someone else (e.g. as a police officer). It is generally seen as wrong to deliberately kill an innocent human being.
What happened in the case study of Jodie and Mary?
Jodie and Mary were conjoined twins, born in Manchester in 2000. Doctors predicted that, if no intervention occured, Jodie and Mary would both die in around three months. They also said that if you separated them, one of the twins would certainly die, while the other twin would probably live.
The Catholic parents, like the church itself, were against intervention in this case as it would be the same as murder. The operation was successfully performed, against the wishes of the parents, and Jodie (the stronger of the twins) was given the organs needed for her survival. Mary died.
What happened in the case study of baby Theresa?
Theresa Ann Campo Pearson, an anencephalic infant known to the public as “Baby Theresa,” was born in Florida in 1992. She effectively had “no brain”, and doctors predicted that she would die within two weeks. Her parents decided that some good should come from her short life, and asked the doctors to use her organs to save other lives if possible. The doctors were prevented from taking organs from Baby Theresa by Florida law. Doing so would involve killing Baby Theresa, which would be illegal. Baby Theresa died at 9 days old. By this stage, her organs were no longer of any use.
What happened in the case study of Connor Peterson?
‘Connor Peterson’ never made it into this world alive. His mother, Laci Peterson (pictured), was killed in 2002 by her husband when she was 8 months pregnant (‘Connor’ was the name she had chosen for the baby). Their bodies were washed up on a beach in California What is unusual about this case is that Scott Peterson, Laci’s husband, was sentenced for a double murder (and found guilty - he was sentenced to death and is now on death row). The foetus here was treated as a human being.
What is the Utilitarian view on the right to life?
Utilitarianism is teleological - it looks at the ‘end’ or ‘purpose’ of our actions, not the acts themselves. There is no sanctity of life principle here. The end justifies the means, so if we want to decide whether in this specific case it is wrong to kill, we would need to look at the consequences of the killing. If the outcomes are good, the action is a good one.
What is the problem with the Utilitarian view on the right to life?
One of the problems with this approach is the need to ascribe a value to a human life based on the amount of pleasure/pain (or interest/preferences etc.) that the person is likely to experience. Firstly, it seems wrong to value one person more than another simply because they are capable of having more preferences, experiencing a greater amount of pleasure etc. Secondly, it isn’t at all clear how you could say how much pleasure or pain was lost if an embryo was not implanted. Even if we assumed an average amount of pleasure, how much pleasure are we talking about for a whole lifetime?
How would Kantian ethics view the right to life?
The simple answer - we should all treat people as we would like to be treated. This leads to an obvious sanctity of life position, as rational people don’t usually want to be killed. However, it is easy to imagine a universal rule that allows you to kill terminally ill people with no hope of recovery who want to die. We could make a law of nature that said as soon as a terminally ill person loses the will to live, they will die. Kant is likely to come back here with his third statement of the categorical imperative - never treat anyone merely as a means to an end. Killing someone to end their pain would be to use them. This means, using Kant’s theory, that as soon as human life is genetically distinct, and would, if allowed to, grow into a rational being, it is wrong to kill them. It is important to remember that Kant came up with the idea of the United Nations (League of Nations) with common moral rules. The idea of ‘rights’ - universal, absolute deontological principles - is entirely consistent with Kant’s ethical theory.
How does Natural Law view the right to life?
Natural Law is, like Kant’s theory, deontological. It deals with absolute moral principles that look at whether an action is right or wrong. Killing, whether abortion or euthanasia, is seen as equivalent to murder. Life and Death issues are much more black and white with Natural Law.
What is situation ethics view on the right to life?
Situation Ethics demands that you do the most loving thing in any circumstance. There are no hard and fast rules. Situation Ethics is Pragmatic, and would look at what is in people’s best interests. Situation Ethicists would probably have advocated ignoring rules about sanctity of life in order to do the pragmatic thing. That doesn’t mean that you should discard the rule about not killing one person to save others. It’s a good rule, but in some situations (each situation is different) love will motivate you to break the rules.
What would virtue ethics say about the right to life?
It’s important to remember that Virtue Ethics is advocated by Natural Law theorists (Aristotle and Aquinas) who have a very strong belief in the sanctity of human life. You could argue that doctors are courageous to carry out abortions in places where anti-abortionists threaten them, or that euthanasia is an act of kindness. Aquinas would disagree. Wisdom and Justice are cardinal virtues, and to end a human life would not be just or wise.
What would Maclntyre a relativist virtue ethic supporter say about the right to life?
MacIntyre is a relativist, and works very differently. He would say that we need to understand the context of decisions about the sanctity of life.
What bible verses support the sanctity of life?
Genesis 1:27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.
Jeremiah 1:5 Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.
Exodus 20:13 “You shall not murder. “
1 Corinthians 2:16 “Don‛t you know that you yourselves are God‛s Temple and that God‛s spirit lives in you?”
Mark 12:31 “Love your neighbour as yourself.”
John 13:34 “A new commandment I give to you : love one another as I have loved you.”
