Consequentialist Vs Deontology

A widely controversial issue, abortion is defined by a deliberate termination of human pregnancy. Philosophers and people alike have taken various attitudes regarding the morality of abortion, defending or attacking the permissibility of such termination. From such debate, two distinct views emerge: the consequential and the deontological perspective. The consequentialist would argue for the morality of an action to be judged on the consequences in attempt to have the best outcome with the least devastating consequences. In contrast, the deontologist would argue for the rights of the human fetus to be considered equal to that of an existing human. Virtue ethicists have also debated the case of abortion and have avoided dilemmas traditional …show more content…
The deontologist differs from Singer’s consequentialist view as they classify a fetus as a person, giving it the same rights as any existing human, granting it the right to life. The deontologist would argue against abortion, holding to the notion of, “moral character by virtue of their adherence to the [laws],” (Lake, 482). In the case of abortion, the deontologist would consider it wrong to kill a human fetus, considering abortion to be equivalent to murder which is illegal. Since deontologists look for virtue by adhering to rules, to break the law would be inconsistent with their values, thus forbidding abortion. Although the deontologist holds to value the life of the human fetus, the consequentialist holds that a fetus cannot hold rights to their humanity as they lack the two essentials differentiating humans from that of animals: self-awareness and intelligence. The deontologist cannot argue that fetuses lack self-awareness and intelligence, thus it is impossible to rightfully consider a fetus equal to that of a human. The feminist argument made by Judith Jarvis Thompson holds to the notion of the woman’s right to her own body, thus valuing the life of a fetus over the life of an existing human would be a violation of the future mother’s autonomy. Abiding to the consequentialist notion, it would be more honourable …show more content…
Applying a virtue ethical approach to abortion would distinguish each circumstance based on the current state, rather than grouping all cases of abortion as the same. One traditional religious opinion on abortion taken by John Noonan holds that, “if a spermatozoon is destroyed, one destroys a being,” (Singer, 26) equating the termination of a spermatozoon to murder of a human. In regards to either traditionalist case, the virtue ethicist would argue for the autonomy of the mother-to-be, deeming her the authority to her own body, to that of a lesser being lacking the definitives to humanity. Another traditional view made by Patrick Lee and Robert George held that the genetic coding of the embryo gives it a potential future “rational nature,” (Singer, 20). The ability to become a human in the future thus grants it a right to life, as believed by Lee and

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