Question
How do you respond to Warren's argument that abortion is generally morally justified because we must compare the rights of a full-fledged moral person (an
How do you respond to Warren's argument that abortion is generally morally justified because we must compare the rights of a full-fledged moral person (an adult woman) with the rights of a potential person (a fetus) -- when they conflict in the case of an unwanted pregnancy, the actual person's rights override the rights of the potential person?
She argues that abortion is a moral matter (something is killed, to be sure), but no personis being killed, since fetuses do not have any, or at least all, of the traits of a person. (If we give fetuses full moral personhood, then we must, to be consistent, also give many non-human animals personhood, such as fish, cats, cows, and many other creatures, since they have many more person-like traits than a fetus. Incidentally, one could argue against Warren here, and argue that recognizing fetuses' rights also entails recognizing the rights of non-human animals.)
Is this a compelling argument for the morality of abortion? Please explain.
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