This statement is essentially asking whether abortion is ever acceptable. Your job is to respond!
Suggested structure
- Introduction: What is the statement trying to say? A good essay will briefly mention the key issues (when does life begin, the law, mother’s rights vs child’s rights) and then suggest what the conclusion will be.
- Set some background. It’s worth explaining issues such as when life begins and why this is relevant to the issue of abortion. You could also talk about the ideas of “viability”, “ensoulment” and human rights and explain why they are relevant.
- Agreement: Why might some people agree? (eg. Roman Catholics) What reasons and evidence do they have to back this up? Draw on the background issues like ensoulment, viability and human rights to give weight to your argument. Then analyse: is this a good way to approach the problem? What are the strengths and weaknesses?
- Disagreement: Why are some people “pro-choice”? What’s the reason for suggesting that the mother’s life and health is more important than the baby’s? You could talk about the law, and how it attempted to combat the damage done through illegal abortion. Then analyse: is this a good way to approach the problem? What are the strengths and weaknesses?
- Conclusion: What is your view on this? Who do you agree with? Why is your view stronger than the other options?
Tip: A really good essay is nuanced. That means it recognises the strengths of both sides and attempts to find a way through. Very few people completely argue that an unborn child has no rights; however, they do recognise that perhaps the mother’s rights are more important. Have a look at this for some ideas. It was written by someone who has just finished their PhD at Cambridge University and has some strong views on abortion as a fundamentalist Christian: Abortion is Wrong
Good luck! Please leave a comment or email me if you have questions. This is due on Wednesday 16th Feb.