Cultural Analysis
Abortion may be an eight letter word but it still is one of the biggest controversies throughout the world today. While there are many Pro- Life people, there are still the same amount of pro-choice people as well. Some may feel as though having an abortion does not seem as much as a big deal as some may think, but in reality it is a very big deal. Having an abortion comes’ with pros as well as cons for example: not having a baby, but it can sometimes and usually most of the times have negative after effects as in health issues etc. While reading Claire Culwell’s blog on her story “ Abortion Survivor Story” , she tells her story on how she became an abortion survivor. After viewing you will see why having abortions are bad and why searching other options are better; adoption.
Culwell’s blog talk about how her mother was 13 when she found out that she was pregnant and went to have an abortion. After her abortion she found out that she was still pregnant and the doctor told her that she was having twins and that’s why having an abortion didn’t work the first time. When she went to get a second abortion the doctor told her It was too late to have another one. Her mother gave her up for adoption and concludes that she wish that she would just had the babies and then give them both up for an adoption if she would have known the effects of having an abortion.
After reading this blog, one would see that Culwell’s blog is enforcing the adoption policy and that getting an abortion is wrong and pointless. Also she is stating that instead of hurting ones self, we could actually help other people who cant have babies themselves. The social purposes of this text is to help confused soon to be parents out with their decisions on whether or not if they should get an abortion or not. To show them the other positive reasons on why they should keep their baby, because they an make another family happy.
Some difference between my values and the readers values in the text are really not that different. Both of us feel as though getting an abortion is wrong because it doesn’t give the unborn baby a chance to speak for itself because he/ she has not been born yet, and they can not tell you if they would like to be born or not. This text has a social understanding to the extent to why the mother was having an abortion. And the reason was because she felt that she was to young to have children. Although this text tells why females should rather go to an adoption agency then having an abortion, this might hurt others that still feel as though getting an abortion is the only other option that they have for them. And if being able to get an abortion became illegal then a lot of people would become upset.
This text is connected to a lot of other social groups because a lot of people do believe that having an adoption is the better option than getting an abortion. Having your child be adopted will let him or her get to speak their own voice. This abortion survivor got to speak her voice and got to see and live life and is blessed for it. Not many babies get to say that because they were aborted.
Works Cited - Culwell, Claire. Putting a face to what your fighting for. 18, 4 2010. www.prolifeblogs.com
Saturday, April 24, 2010
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
cultural analysis (final)
This cartoon about abortion is trying to show how innocent lives are being taken away. Abortion is one person deciding to get rid of another life even though it is an innocent life that has done nothing wrong. Abortion is choosing whether a baby should be born, no one has the right to decide if a life should be ended. This is why in this cartoon abortion is being called "the death sentence" because it is being chosen for the unborn babies without any thought of the babies wanting to be born and to have a chance at life.
Another thing this illustration is trying to do is to link abortion with capital punishment such as the death penalty. A lot of people would be against the death sentence of an innocent person, which is why abortion was compared to it. Seeing abortion as the death sentence of an innocent person makes it easier to get people to look at abortion and see the how it is ending the life of a human that has done nothing wrong and deserves to live. Linking these two topics also gets people who don't have a clear opinion on abortion yet know that sentencing innocent people to death is wrong to see the harm in abortion.
This picture is showing the pro-life argument of that is against abortion. Pro-life means that abortion is wrong and should not be allowed. This picture can also be targeted to people that are against capital punishment because it is also a big controversial issue in America that many people feel strongly about. Also there are very few people that would be fine with the death sentence of an innocent human being in this society which is why this cartoon is worded in a way to makes it sound very horrible.
This picture also shows the amount of innocent lives that are taken away daily and are not acknowledged. The word "thousands" makes you think of the excessive amount of abortions that take place on a daily bases. It shows Abortions happen very often and many innocent lives are lost.
Ajdin's Cultural Analysis
In America abortion is a controversial issue because there are differing views on the topic. There are the “pro-life” people, the people who are against abortion, and the “pro-choice” people, the ones who are for abortion. In recent years abortion has made it to the mainstream media; for instance, a movie like Juno (a teenage girl gets pregnant and doesn’t know if she wants to keep the baby or have an abortion) and shows like 16 and Pregnant on MTV. Also, there are many bloggers out there who specifically write about abortion; both from pro-life and pro-choice. I found a blog by Pat Richards, a pro-choicer, titled “The Pro-Lifer Who Had an Abortion”. I found Pat Richards’s blog, The Pro-Lifer Who Had an Abortion, to be an interesting one because I learned about a woman who is against abortions, but when she was younger, she had an abortion.
If you read one of Pat Richards’s blogs you can clearly tell what side of abortion he is with, the pro-choice. He is a pro-choicer and is willing to defend his beliefs no matter what. Of course Pat believes that abortion is not murder, and he tries to persuade anyone who reads his blogs the same. So, when he found a thread about a pro-lifer who had an abortion, on Abortion.com’s Facebook page he had to expose it; this would give him and all pro-choicers more credibility because it shows how a pro-lifer CHOSE to have an abortion.
The Pro-Lifer Who Had an Abortion is one of Pat’s blogs about abortion. Pat starts off the blog by stating that he goes on Abortion.com’s Facebook page to read the interesting conversations between the pro-life and pro-choice people. He introduces us to a woman from Florida who is a pro-lifer; he describes her as very reasonable, calm, and smart based on her other comments/posts (Richards, 2010). Then he tells us about a comment left by this Florida woman “quietly” admitting to having an abortion when she was younger. Also, that the Florida woman went on to say that woman should not have access to the abortion procedure. The Florida woman wants to deny other woman the procedure that she took advantage of when she was younger. Her beliefs would affect many young women out there who are pregnant and thinking about having an abortion. This Florida woman is not only deny young pregnant woman the abortion procedure, she is also deny them their constitutional right to choose; something that she took advantage of when she was younger.
In America, women have had the right to choose if they wanted to have an abortion since it was made legal by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1973. The blog, The Pro-Lifer Who Had an Abortion by Pat Richards, shows us that people can change their beliefs and that is okay, but what is not okay is denying others their constitutional rights. Another thing I believe this blog shows is how Americans still have not came to a clear consensus about abortion and most likely never will.
Work Cited
Richards, Pat. "The Pro-Lifer Who Had an Abortion." Abortion & Reproductive Rights Advocate. N.p., 07 Apr 2010. Web. 7 Apr 2010.
If you read one of Pat Richards’s blogs you can clearly tell what side of abortion he is with, the pro-choice. He is a pro-choicer and is willing to defend his beliefs no matter what. Of course Pat believes that abortion is not murder, and he tries to persuade anyone who reads his blogs the same. So, when he found a thread about a pro-lifer who had an abortion, on Abortion.com’s Facebook page he had to expose it; this would give him and all pro-choicers more credibility because it shows how a pro-lifer CHOSE to have an abortion.
The Pro-Lifer Who Had an Abortion is one of Pat’s blogs about abortion. Pat starts off the blog by stating that he goes on Abortion.com’s Facebook page to read the interesting conversations between the pro-life and pro-choice people. He introduces us to a woman from Florida who is a pro-lifer; he describes her as very reasonable, calm, and smart based on her other comments/posts (Richards, 2010). Then he tells us about a comment left by this Florida woman “quietly” admitting to having an abortion when she was younger. Also, that the Florida woman went on to say that woman should not have access to the abortion procedure. The Florida woman wants to deny other woman the procedure that she took advantage of when she was younger. Her beliefs would affect many young women out there who are pregnant and thinking about having an abortion. This Florida woman is not only deny young pregnant woman the abortion procedure, she is also deny them their constitutional right to choose; something that she took advantage of when she was younger.
In America, women have had the right to choose if they wanted to have an abortion since it was made legal by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1973. The blog, The Pro-Lifer Who Had an Abortion by Pat Richards, shows us that people can change their beliefs and that is okay, but what is not okay is denying others their constitutional rights. Another thing I believe this blog shows is how Americans still have not came to a clear consensus about abortion and most likely never will.
Work Cited
Richards, Pat. "The Pro-Lifer Who Had an Abortion." Abortion & Reproductive Rights Advocate. N.p., 07 Apr 2010. Web. 7 Apr 2010.
Monday, April 19, 2010
Tiffany's Final Cultural Analysis
Cultural Analysis
On Christmas Day in 2007, “Juno” was released in theaters everywhere. Juno is a movie about a 16 year old high school teenager who has sex with her best-friend (sort of), but is not her boyfriend. Juno then finds out that she has gotten pregnant and thinks that her whole world has came down and crashed upon her. She wishes that her life would go back to normal, but in reality she knows that during the next 9 months it’s not. Throughout the course of the movie Juno teaches and shows not only teenagers but everyone the struggles, responsibility and maturity that one would gain after getting pregnant and actually keeping the baby. Juno shows us her life and what she has to go through because of the responsibilities that she has made. She shows us that everything in life is not all that it is cracked up to be and she learns to appreciate the things in life that she already has right there in front of her face.
16 and pregnant, sounds like a lullaby for many teenagers here in the US today, wishing that their pregnancy would go away. This is why many females tend to go towards the abortion method because they feel as if they are not ready to have a baby or that their life will be put on hold forever and it will never be the same after the pregnancy. Juno’s friend Leah was the typical friend who told Juno that she should get an abortion at the clinic, because she felt that, that would be the easiest and fastest way to get rid of her pregnancy, although it would be the fastest way it is not the easiest nor is it the safest. While Juno’s other friend on the other hand, Su- Chin who is a pro-life follower told both Juno and Leah that Juno’s baby probably has little toes and fingernails already grown on her inside of her. After Su-Chin tells them that Leah and Juno decide to go for adoption. This is one positive way to get rid of an unwanted pregnancy. Many females forget about the other available options for getting rid of an unwanted pregnancy they just go straight towards abortion. After telling her parents, who actually wished that they would have rather of her told them that she was on drugs other than pregnant, was not that upset with it and was going to help her get through the pregnancy and find decent and responsible adoptive parents for her child.
After finding the adoptive parents for her unborn child, one would think that their life was perfect and that they have everything they could ever want and that a baby would complete that but she learns that this is not true.
Although we all strive to seem as if we have a perfect life, nobody will ever have a perfect life. The writer shows us the struggles that one goes through like wondering whether or not if one is ready to take care of an unborn child. The writer shows the struggles of both Juno and the soon to be “adoptive parents”. The writer also uses a white middle class teenage student, which is like the average female who gets pregnant. Juno, on one hand portrays all of the pregnant teenagers in the U.S today, and some of the changes that most teenagers go through whether or not they should have an abortion; while most of the time they see as a an abortion is an easy route out. With the adoptive parents he shows that even though some people may seem as the “perfect” couple , everyone has their ups and downs. Not everyone is as ready as they think they are to take care of a child. This is why females, teenagers especially should take birth control if they know that they are sexually active, and practice wearing condoms. And unlike in the movie where one parent was not ready to have a child, there are many families out there who would love to raise your child, because of other factors in which makes them unable to have children. So instead of killing a baby , females need to think of other factors that could help them and even others around them.
On Christmas Day in 2007, “Juno” was released in theaters everywhere. Juno is a movie about a 16 year old high school teenager who has sex with her best-friend (sort of), but is not her boyfriend. Juno then finds out that she has gotten pregnant and thinks that her whole world has came down and crashed upon her. She wishes that her life would go back to normal, but in reality she knows that during the next 9 months it’s not. Throughout the course of the movie Juno teaches and shows not only teenagers but everyone the struggles, responsibility and maturity that one would gain after getting pregnant and actually keeping the baby. Juno shows us her life and what she has to go through because of the responsibilities that she has made. She shows us that everything in life is not all that it is cracked up to be and she learns to appreciate the things in life that she already has right there in front of her face.
16 and pregnant, sounds like a lullaby for many teenagers here in the US today, wishing that their pregnancy would go away. This is why many females tend to go towards the abortion method because they feel as if they are not ready to have a baby or that their life will be put on hold forever and it will never be the same after the pregnancy. Juno’s friend Leah was the typical friend who told Juno that she should get an abortion at the clinic, because she felt that, that would be the easiest and fastest way to get rid of her pregnancy, although it would be the fastest way it is not the easiest nor is it the safest. While Juno’s other friend on the other hand, Su- Chin who is a pro-life follower told both Juno and Leah that Juno’s baby probably has little toes and fingernails already grown on her inside of her. After Su-Chin tells them that Leah and Juno decide to go for adoption. This is one positive way to get rid of an unwanted pregnancy. Many females forget about the other available options for getting rid of an unwanted pregnancy they just go straight towards abortion. After telling her parents, who actually wished that they would have rather of her told them that she was on drugs other than pregnant, was not that upset with it and was going to help her get through the pregnancy and find decent and responsible adoptive parents for her child.
After finding the adoptive parents for her unborn child, one would think that their life was perfect and that they have everything they could ever want and that a baby would complete that but she learns that this is not true.
Although we all strive to seem as if we have a perfect life, nobody will ever have a perfect life. The writer shows us the struggles that one goes through like wondering whether or not if one is ready to take care of an unborn child. The writer shows the struggles of both Juno and the soon to be “adoptive parents”. The writer also uses a white middle class teenage student, which is like the average female who gets pregnant. Juno, on one hand portrays all of the pregnant teenagers in the U.S today, and some of the changes that most teenagers go through whether or not they should have an abortion; while most of the time they see as a an abortion is an easy route out. With the adoptive parents he shows that even though some people may seem as the “perfect” couple , everyone has their ups and downs. Not everyone is as ready as they think they are to take care of a child. This is why females, teenagers especially should take birth control if they know that they are sexually active, and practice wearing condoms. And unlike in the movie where one parent was not ready to have a child, there are many families out there who would love to raise your child, because of other factors in which makes them unable to have children. So instead of killing a baby , females need to think of other factors that could help them and even others around them.
Rhetorical Analysis Tiffany Dickerson
My name is Tiffany Dickerson and currently attends Wayne State University. My current major is Nursing, but I am having a major curve towards Psychological Studies. I live in Southfield, Mi and I like to sleep, listen to music and just have an overall good time wherever I am.
As A savvy writer, I have noticed a lot of talk in the world about different issues that are happening or has happened lately. While reading Saunders “ Braindead Megaphone” and Sheffield’s “ Not Dealing With Reality” I’ve came to a conclusion that we the people, the citizens of the united states are the people who are braindead listening to the man on the megaphone, while the government and others represent the man on the megaphone. Talking about different things happening and we just switch to whatever “they” (the man on the megaphone) is talking about at that time. Getting back to Sheffield’s “ Not Dealing With Reality” , we the people are always talking about all the problems that the United States deal with, but then kind of push away from these problems, hoping that it will eventually the problem will be solved. Everyone has been and will be influenced by what the media say’s today in our culture.
There are so many things going on in the world today that not everyone knows about simply because of the lack of news that is seen and hear. Now news stations today talk about simple stuff like movies and break-ins and killings, while they really need to focus more on things that are going to help society. Every now and then will you hear the news talk about global warming and how much it is effecting our planet. Glaciers are melting faster than expected and since they tell us this information on the news you would think that the U.S Government and other governments would try to make new laws or do something to help decrease global warming. Instead they just talk about it and you never really hear about it again until a disaster happens. Another one is with the terrorists , we shouldn’t have to go through all the hassles we do now just to get on a plane. Society talks about how they need to do all theses security changes to make sure that the airlines are extra safe ; what they and ourselves fail to realize is that we aren’t putting in 100% effort, making sure any type of terrorist might come through. We just look for certain characteristics and skip all the other people who might actually be a terrorists, basically stereotyping. I have noticed with some of my writings that the more credibility the author shows in their argument then the better you paper comes out and people would actually spend time reading it because they feel as though your paper is credible. And because of that now when I look at some text’s before reading it I look to see where I have gotten the source from and is it scholarly or if it is credible enough. Having a credible paper really helps out bring your argument and helps state reasons why your argument would be the side that they decided to choose.
What we don’t know is that what the media says isn’t always everything its cracked up to seem. The media lies and manipulates its listeners to think what they want them to think so that it will get in their heads that it is good on what they are telling them.
While writing for the past couple of months I have written an analysis paper on visual arguments and textual arguments. With the visual analysis I had to argue what Calvin Klein was trying to say with his fashion ads. And how daring they are , models half naked or looking like they are engaging in sexual activity. With my other analysis I analyzed Chuck Klosterman and how everything in one persons life usually happens to everyone else in life at least at one point in time. He also notices that everyone is always trying to concur life but continually fail to achieve it. When looking at ones ethos’s they have to be credible. Some authors are credible because they have research to back up their information. But now when I look at ones writing I see if they have personal experience or not. Although you do have some writers who only state their opinion and have no facts to back themselves up. Having personal experience, and good facts will make you seem very credible because your stating all the information you have right there in front of the readers face, hiding nothing and you also have personal experience to back it up ten times more.
As A savvy writer, I have noticed a lot of talk in the world about different issues that are happening or has happened lately. While reading Saunders “ Braindead Megaphone” and Sheffield’s “ Not Dealing With Reality” I’ve came to a conclusion that we the people, the citizens of the united states are the people who are braindead listening to the man on the megaphone, while the government and others represent the man on the megaphone. Talking about different things happening and we just switch to whatever “they” (the man on the megaphone) is talking about at that time. Getting back to Sheffield’s “ Not Dealing With Reality” , we the people are always talking about all the problems that the United States deal with, but then kind of push away from these problems, hoping that it will eventually the problem will be solved. Everyone has been and will be influenced by what the media say’s today in our culture.
There are so many things going on in the world today that not everyone knows about simply because of the lack of news that is seen and hear. Now news stations today talk about simple stuff like movies and break-ins and killings, while they really need to focus more on things that are going to help society. Every now and then will you hear the news talk about global warming and how much it is effecting our planet. Glaciers are melting faster than expected and since they tell us this information on the news you would think that the U.S Government and other governments would try to make new laws or do something to help decrease global warming. Instead they just talk about it and you never really hear about it again until a disaster happens. Another one is with the terrorists , we shouldn’t have to go through all the hassles we do now just to get on a plane. Society talks about how they need to do all theses security changes to make sure that the airlines are extra safe ; what they and ourselves fail to realize is that we aren’t putting in 100% effort, making sure any type of terrorist might come through. We just look for certain characteristics and skip all the other people who might actually be a terrorists, basically stereotyping. I have noticed with some of my writings that the more credibility the author shows in their argument then the better you paper comes out and people would actually spend time reading it because they feel as though your paper is credible. And because of that now when I look at some text’s before reading it I look to see where I have gotten the source from and is it scholarly or if it is credible enough. Having a credible paper really helps out bring your argument and helps state reasons why your argument would be the side that they decided to choose.
What we don’t know is that what the media says isn’t always everything its cracked up to seem. The media lies and manipulates its listeners to think what they want them to think so that it will get in their heads that it is good on what they are telling them.
While writing for the past couple of months I have written an analysis paper on visual arguments and textual arguments. With the visual analysis I had to argue what Calvin Klein was trying to say with his fashion ads. And how daring they are , models half naked or looking like they are engaging in sexual activity. With my other analysis I analyzed Chuck Klosterman and how everything in one persons life usually happens to everyone else in life at least at one point in time. He also notices that everyone is always trying to concur life but continually fail to achieve it. When looking at ones ethos’s they have to be credible. Some authors are credible because they have research to back up their information. But now when I look at ones writing I see if they have personal experience or not. Although you do have some writers who only state their opinion and have no facts to back themselves up. Having personal experience, and good facts will make you seem very credible because your stating all the information you have right there in front of the readers face, hiding nothing and you also have personal experience to back it up ten times more.
Cultural Analysis: Slavery vs Abortion
Abortion is a controversial topic that has been debated all around the world. There are people who are against abortion believe in banning the act of killing a fetus at any stage of pregnancy; however, there are also people that are pro-choice, and believe that the women should have the right to choose to keep or abort the child. The ad below is depicting an African American male, holding an unborn child on clouds in the sky, saying "I know how you feel! When I was a slave down, there, the courts didn't I was fully human either." The ad is advocating a pro-life argument, by relating the subject of abortion to slavery. The audience the author is targeting with this ad are people who are both for and against abortion, and mainly those who have a deep understanding about the topic slavery. By using a well known disastrous past event in U.S history, and affiliating two negatives to enlighten the audience the author of the ad is using the art of persuasion to illustrate how abortion is a mistake.The cartoon is depicting that abortion is just wrong as slavery was in the past. In the past slave were not considered fully human, so their lives were considered meaningless if they were to have been murdered or killed. According to Digital History during the constitutional convention in 1783, the three-fifth compromise was created which argued that slaves do not count equally as a free person (1). Instead for tax purposes, Congress compromised a ratio of how the slaves were going to be counted (Digital History 1). This concludes how slaves were not considered fully human. The cartoonist included this event deliberately to sway the viewers to believe that by having abortions people are not also considering the unborn child to be human or "fully human."
The cartoonist does a well crafted job by presenting the audience with negative past event in history, and connecting it to the subject of abortion. By using this technique the author willingly affiliates a negative event in history with the issue of abortion, to make the audience believe that abortion is also wrong. Many people would agree that slavery was a dark time in our nations past and that it was wrong to not consider African Americans humans; the cartoonist takes advantage of this by linking how abortion is wrong also.
By having knowledge of the culture during the time of slavery allows for the audience to fully connect and understand the cartoonist point of view on the issue of abortion. The ad clearly depicts a pro-life argument, and strongly persuades the viewers. The cliche "A picture is worth a thousand words" seems to ring true about this ad.
Source:
Digital History. 19 April 2010. 19 April 2010
cultural analysis
This cartoon about abortion is trying to show how innocent lives are being taken away. Abortion is one person deciding to get rid of another life even though it is an innocent life that has done nothing wrong. Abortion is choosing whether a baby should be born, no one has the right to decide if a life should be ended. This is why in this cartoon abortion is being called "the death sentence" because it is being chosen for the unborn babies without any thought of the babies wanting to be born and to have a chance at life.
Another thing this illustration is trying to do is to link abortion with capital punishment such as the death penalty. A lot of people would be against the death sentence of an innocent person, which is why abortion was compared to it. Seeing abortion as the death sentence of an innocent person makes it easier to get people to look at abortion and see the how it is ending the life of a human that has done nothing wrong and deserves to live. Linking these two topics also gets people who don't have a clear opinion on abortion yet know that sentencing innocent people to death is wrong to see the harm in abortion.
This picture also shows the amount of innocent lives that are taken away daily and are not acknowledged. The word "thousands" makes you think of the excessive amount of abortions that take place on a daily bases. Abortions happen very often and many innocent lives are lost.
My name is Hanain Majeed and I am at Wayne State University. I was born in Iraq, lived in Jordan for a couple of years, and have been raised in Farmington Michigan since I was five. I am attending Wayne in the Pre-med program hoping to become a pediatrician in the future.
This semester in English has helped me with writing paper a lot. We first analyzed a commercial or ad where I analyzed the use of anamorphic characters in advertisement of cereal to children. My paper focused on Tony the Tiger and his role in selling Frosted Flakes. We then anaylzed a book, my paper was on the book "Everything Bad is Good For You" which was about the fact that video games and television are not rotting the brains of the new generation but in fact is good for problem solving and learning. In the definition paper we wrote, I chose to write about how abortion is murder. I wrote this paper because I am Catholic and I have a strong belief that abortion is wrong and that the fetus is in fact a human being that deserves life. My strong Catholic beliefs that I learned growing up helped me to establish my opinion and write my paper about how in fact abortion is the murder of innocent young life. I believe my previous English papers, where I come from, how I was raised, and my religion contribute a lot to the way I write today.
This semester in English has helped me with writing paper a lot. We first analyzed a commercial or ad where I analyzed the use of anamorphic characters in advertisement of cereal to children. My paper focused on Tony the Tiger and his role in selling Frosted Flakes. We then anaylzed a book, my paper was on the book "Everything Bad is Good For You" which was about the fact that video games and television are not rotting the brains of the new generation but in fact is good for problem solving and learning. In the definition paper we wrote, I chose to write about how abortion is murder. I wrote this paper because I am Catholic and I have a strong belief that abortion is wrong and that the fetus is in fact a human being that deserves life. My strong Catholic beliefs that I learned growing up helped me to establish my opinion and write my paper about how in fact abortion is the murder of innocent young life. I believe my previous English papers, where I come from, how I was raised, and my religion contribute a lot to the way I write today.
Thursday, April 15, 2010
Abortion Links
Pro-Choice:
http://www.abortionfacts.com/life_or_choice/pro_choice.asp
Pro-Life:
http://www.prolifeaction.org/
General Information on Abortion:
http://www.buzzle.com/articles/pros-and-cons-of-abortion.html
http://www.abortionfacts.com/life_or_choice/pro_choice.asp
Pro-Life:
http://www.prolifeaction.org/
General Information on Abortion:
http://www.buzzle.com/articles/pros-and-cons-of-abortion.html
Hanain Majeed
English 1020
Abortion is Murder
Abortion or the act of terminating your pregnancy is murder. During the nine months that a woman is pregnant a baby is being developed in her womb. From the moment of conception, that embryo is a life since those two cells will become a baby. Abortion is killing your baby because you are choosing for that life to be taken away therefore taking that babies life and future away from them when they had no say in the matter. Abortion should be considered murder.
According to the Oxford English Dictionary the word murder is the unlawful killing of another human being. The trouble most people have with associating abortion with the definition of murder is the “human being” part. According to pro-choice advocates “the fetus is at best a potential human being and not yet an actual human being.” (Stephen Currie) This argument is showing that even pro choice people that argue that the fetus is not a human being still state that it will become a human life in their argument. The fact is murdering someone takes their future and life away from them and abortion does this also but to an unborn baby. Abortion takes away that young human life and the future of that baby.
“From the moment of conception, the fetus is an individual. It is not identical to its father, nor is it identical to its mother,”( ) that specific embryo at the moment of conception has a specific set of genes from each parent that is different. That combination has never been made and never will be recreated, that set of genes are specific and unique to that life that is being produced. Genes are what all of human beings are made of and are specific to each human, having that trait in an embryo at conception shows how early in development that an embryo is a potential human. This is an argument that can be made to prove that at conception that embryo is a human life. Many pro-choice arguments say that abortion is allowed during the first trimester due to the fact that the fetus has no heart rate or a good brain development. This is no means to say that the fetus will not develop a heart beat and a developed brain. In the first trimester the embryo is not developed but still has the genetic make up and the developing cells of becoming a human being.
The argument that unborn babies are not humans because they are dependant on another human being is not justifiable. If you were to use this argument then the killing of newborns would also be considered ok. Infants are completely dependant on their parents with no way of survival on their own. Infants need food, shelter, warmth, and care from their parents to survive just as an unborn child in a womb. Saying that abortion is allowed since the baby is unable to survive on its own would just be like saying killing of infants is allowed also. Killing infants is illegal and is murder, yet when babies are in the womb it is not considered murder, yet it should be.
The woman’s rights argument which is the main idea behind the pro-choice argument should not be used. Pro-choice supporters say that abortion is a right that women should have because they should make their own choices concerning their bodies. “Women’s “right to choose” abortion in the first trimester symbolizes liberation from patriarchal control over women’s sexual and reproductive lives,”( this statement shows how many people view the abortion decision as a right a woman has. The problem with this argument is the fact that it is not just the mother’s body; therefore it is not the mother’s job to choose to end a life even though the baby is inside of the mother. There are two lives involved in a pregnancy, the baby and the mother. It can’t be thought of as a woman’s right issue because no one has the right to choose to end a life, the choice to end a babies life should not be a right. Since there are two livers involved, shouldn’t anyone think about the babies right to live? An abortion involves two lives and the right to live is the most important right any human can be given, and we should not take that right away from the most innocent and fragile stage of humans. This is not a matter of womans rights to their body because it is not a tumor or wart being removed from the body but a whole other life. Abortion or murder of an unborn baby should not be considered a right for anyone.
Murder is premeditated according to the Oxford English Dictionary the word premeditated means “thought out, contemplated, or planned in advance.” When a murder is proved to have been planned out that person is charged with first degree murder. Having an abortion is premeditated; a lot of planning and thought goes into going to a clinic and terminating a pregnancy. This is the same as a premeditated murder, a very carefully planned out way to end a life. You cannot use an excuse as to not knowing the consequences of your actions from having sex to getting pregnant to getting the abortion. Abortion clinics require many days to think about going through with the abortion and even require counseling before the final decision. This shows that having an abortion you are very well informed as to what you are doing to your baby. An abortion is a premeditated way to kill an unborn baby which means it should be considered murder.
In the bible abortion is addressed "before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee, and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified [made holy] thee."( Stephen Currie) This is one of the thoughts that many Christians hold dearly in their beliefs. This is an argument that many people use. People that are for abortion think life starts at birth therefore abortion is justifiable. Others think life starts at conception and God knows you before you are even conceived, making it hard for people to agree with abortion or in their opinion murder. In this passage in the bible it is suggesting that God chose each child personally and blessed them while they are in the womb implying they are a human with a soul.
“The task force finds that the new recombinant DNA technologies indisputably prove that the unborn child is a whole human being from the moment of fertilization.”
(Alison Mutlock) This statement from well taught scientists and researchers that have studied the embryos and fetuses to see how similar their DNA are to adult human beings. At fertilization the scientists found that the recombinant DNA is that of an adult human therefore making the embryo at the moment of fertilization or conception a human being. Proving the embryo is a human at conception and ending the life of an innocent human is illegal and known as murder.
A baby is a human being from the moment of fertilization and throughout the whole term of the pregnancy. At any stage of the pregnancy it should be considered illegal to end the life of that human. The embryo or fetus does not have to have human characteristics, a heart beat, or be self dependant to be considered human. Many studies have shown that at conception the embryo has recombinant DNA and genes specifically for them, making that life a unique human. Abortion, or the killing of your own baby in your womb is wrong should be considered murder.
1.Motluk, Alison. "Science, politics, and morality collide." New Scientist 189.2543 (2006): 8+. Academic OneFile. Web.
2.Abortion Is Not Murder.
Opposing Viewpoints Digests: Abortion. Ed. Stephen Currie.
3. "Abortion Is Murder." Opposing Viewpoints Digests: Abortion. Ed. Stephen Currie.
4. Religious Groups Aim to Eliminate Women's Rights.
Current Controversies: The Abortion Controversy. Ed. Emma Bernay.
5. Life Begins at Conception.
Opposing Viewpoints: Abortion. Ed. James D. Torr.
6. “murder,” and “premeditated” The Oxford English Dictionary_. 2nd ed. 2009
Cultural Analysis Draft
I recently found a blog titled “The Pro-Lifer Who Had an Abortion”; it was written by a blogger named Pat Richards. He starts off by stating that he follows Abortion.com’s Facebook page. The page has 3,000 “friends”, both pro-choice and pro-life. Pat Richards goes on to blog about how he found a thread where a pro-lifer “quietly” admitted of having an abortion when she was younger. The reason for Pat Richards writing his blog was because he was intrigued why this woman, who was a pro-lifer, felt it was okay for her to have an abortion many years ago, but know feels it’s wrong and that woman shouldn’t have abortions anymore. Another reason that I think Pat Richards wrote his blog was because he wanted it to be known that a pro-lifer had an abortion. Just the title of the blog alone can attract many people and get many debates going.
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Ajdin Alic
My name is Ajdin Alic I am 18 years old and a freshman at Wayne State University. I was born in Prijedor, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and immigrated to the United States with my family when I was 3 years old to escape the war that was going on. I was raised in Hamtramck, Michigan and attended all their public schools, including Hamtramck High School. I graduated high school with a 3.84 GPA and honors; my strong points were math, english, and science. Currently, at Wayne State University I am majoring in Global Supply Chain Management (GSCM). As I was in high school I knew that I was going to major business because that was an area that I was interested in and wanted to study.
This semester at Wayne State I have written many types of papers. One of the first things we did was an evaluation of an advertisement. The things that we were supposed to demonstrate in the assignment were the basic tools and terms of rhetoric. Also, we were supposed to write an analysis that would help the reader how the ad works to influence its audience, both through its images and its text. This meant we had to analyze what kind of images they were using and the color scheme. Another thing that I did this semester was write about abortion. The first paper I wrote on abortion was a definition paper. I defined what abortion was and tried to change people’s view on abortion and help them better understand it; I was for abortion, better known as the pro-choice. The second paper I wrote on abortion was an evaluation about abortion. I evaluated abortion and stated some reasons why abortions can be good. Writing these different types of papers helped strengthen my writing overall and I hope to learn more in the future. With my new experiences in writing I have learned that there is more than one side to every argument. Also, I have learned how to analyze the way the author is making their argument and what it says about their views. Another thing that I have learned is to acknowledge the opposing argument because it can make your argument stronger.
I think that people today don’t like dealing with reality, mainly because they have a lot on their plate already; work, kids, and daily stresses. So, they don’t have the time to really think about what’s going on around them and are more likely to believe the views of others. For instance, the war in Iraq, at the time most of us, Americans, didn’t know what to do or believe so we believed what our government told us. When the Bush administration made the decision to go into Iraq everyone was for it. But, after we, Americans, had time to digest what was going on, most of us were against the war in Iraq. This shows that we are susceptible to the media, and are easily influenced by what we hear or see on the TV. That’s why most Americans rather not watch the news, so they can avoid what is going on in the world today. This would give them less things to worry about.
This semester at Wayne State I have written many types of papers. One of the first things we did was an evaluation of an advertisement. The things that we were supposed to demonstrate in the assignment were the basic tools and terms of rhetoric. Also, we were supposed to write an analysis that would help the reader how the ad works to influence its audience, both through its images and its text. This meant we had to analyze what kind of images they were using and the color scheme. Another thing that I did this semester was write about abortion. The first paper I wrote on abortion was a definition paper. I defined what abortion was and tried to change people’s view on abortion and help them better understand it; I was for abortion, better known as the pro-choice. The second paper I wrote on abortion was an evaluation about abortion. I evaluated abortion and stated some reasons why abortions can be good. Writing these different types of papers helped strengthen my writing overall and I hope to learn more in the future. With my new experiences in writing I have learned that there is more than one side to every argument. Also, I have learned how to analyze the way the author is making their argument and what it says about their views. Another thing that I have learned is to acknowledge the opposing argument because it can make your argument stronger.
I think that people today don’t like dealing with reality, mainly because they have a lot on their plate already; work, kids, and daily stresses. So, they don’t have the time to really think about what’s going on around them and are more likely to believe the views of others. For instance, the war in Iraq, at the time most of us, Americans, didn’t know what to do or believe so we believed what our government told us. When the Bush administration made the decision to go into Iraq everyone was for it. But, after we, Americans, had time to digest what was going on, most of us were against the war in Iraq. This shows that we are susceptible to the media, and are easily influenced by what we hear or see on the TV. That’s why most Americans rather not watch the news, so they can avoid what is going on in the world today. This would give them less things to worry about.
Cultural Analysis: AD
Abortion is a controversial topic all around the world. There are people who are against abortion and believe in banning the act killing the fetus at any stage of pregnancy, however, there are people who are pro-choice, and believe that the women should have the right to choose to abort the fetus or not. This ad is depicting an African American male, holding an unborn child in heaven and saying "I know how you feel! When I was a slave down, there, the courts didn't think I was fully human either." The ad is advocating the pro-life argument, by relating the subject of abortion to slavery. During the time of slavery African Americans were not considered fully humans by the court systems; The courts also legalized abortion which suggest that they believe that a human fetus is also not considered fully human. The ad affiliates two negatives to make the audience believe that they actually are related.
Source: http://www.notconformedthoughts.com/UserFiles/Image/abortion.bmp
Tiffany's Cultural Analysis
Cultural Analysis
In the movie Juno a young white teenager has sex for the first time, just because with her boyfriend and ends up pregnant. After Juno finds out she is pregnant she decides that she is not ready to have the baby and instead of getting an abortion, she will give it up for adoption. Once her parents find out they help her decide on what she is going to do with the baby once it is born. Her friend tells her that they have an ad in the newspapers for adoptive families. She search’s for the right family that will take over and become the adoptive family, only to find out right before she has the baby the adoptive father does not think that he is ready to be a father.
The director of “Juno” analyzes that white teenagers have sex at an earlier age then other races do. And that they don’t get all over emotional over getting pregnant then other females in other cultures may handle when found out that they are pregnant. This movie also shows that many white high school females who are pregnant usually will end up having the baby and then giving it up for adoption after the pregnancy. The time of this movie took place in 2007.
In the movie Juno a young white teenager has sex for the first time, just because with her boyfriend and ends up pregnant. After Juno finds out she is pregnant she decides that she is not ready to have the baby and instead of getting an abortion, she will give it up for adoption. Once her parents find out they help her decide on what she is going to do with the baby once it is born. Her friend tells her that they have an ad in the newspapers for adoptive families. She search’s for the right family that will take over and become the adoptive family, only to find out right before she has the baby the adoptive father does not think that he is ready to be a father.
The director of “Juno” analyzes that white teenagers have sex at an earlier age then other races do. And that they don’t get all over emotional over getting pregnant then other females in other cultures may handle when found out that they are pregnant. This movie also shows that many white high school females who are pregnant usually will end up having the baby and then giving it up for adoption after the pregnancy. The time of this movie took place in 2007.
Tiffany's Views on Ethos
As A savvy writer, I have noticed a lot of talk in the world about different issues that are happening or has happened lately. While reading Saunders “ Braindead Megaphone” and Sheffield’s “ Not Dealing With Reality” I’ve came to a conclusion that we the people, the citizens of the united states are the people who are braindead listening to the man on the megaphone, while the gov’t and others represents that man on the megaphone. Talking about different things happening and we just switch to whatever “they” the man on the megaphone is talking about at that time. Getting back to Sheffield’s “ Not Dealing With Reality” , us the people are always talking about all the problems that they United States deal with, but then kind of pushes away from the problem, hoping that it solves the problem its self. Everyone gets influenced by what the media say’s today in our culture.
There are so many things going on in the world today that not everyone knows about simply because of the lack of news that is seen and hear. Now news stations today talk about simple stuff like movies and break ins and killings, while they really need to focus more on things that are going to help society. Every now and then will you hear the news talk about global warming and how much it is effecting our planet. Glaciers are melting faster than expected and since they tell us this information on the news you would think that the u.s gov’t and other govt’s would try to make new laws or do something to help decrease global warming. Instead they just talk about it and you never really hear about it again until a disaster happens. Another one is with the terrorists , you shouldn’t have to do what you do when you get on an airplane. Society talks about how they need to do all theses security changes to make sure that the airlines are extra safe, but what they fail to realize is that we aren’t putting in 100% making sure any type of terrorist might come through. We just look for certain characteristics and skip all the other people who might actually be a terrorists. I have noticed with some of my writings that the more credibility the author shows in their argument then the better you paper comes out and people would actually spend time reading it because they feel as though your paper is credible. And because of that now when I look at some text’s before reading it I look to see where I have gotten the source from and is it scholarly or if it is credible enough. Having a credible paper really helps out bring your argument and helps state reasons why your argument would be the side that they decided to choose.
What we don’t know is that what the media says isn’t always everything its cracked up to seem. The media lies and manipulates its listeners to think what they want them to think so that it will get in their heads that it is good on what they are telling them.
While writing for the past couple of months I have written an analysis paper on visual arguments and textual arguments. With the visual analysis I had to argue what Calvin Klein was trying to say with his fashion ads. And how daring they are , models half naked or looking like they are engaging in sexual activity. With my other analysis I analyzed Chuck Klosterman and how everything in one persons life usually happens to everyone else in life at least at one point in time. He also notices that everyone is always trying to concur life but continually fail to achieve it. When looking at ones ethos’s they have to be credible. Some authors are credible because they have research to back up their information. But now when I look at ones writing I see if they have personal experience or not. One with personal experience have very credible sources.
There are so many things going on in the world today that not everyone knows about simply because of the lack of news that is seen and hear. Now news stations today talk about simple stuff like movies and break ins and killings, while they really need to focus more on things that are going to help society. Every now and then will you hear the news talk about global warming and how much it is effecting our planet. Glaciers are melting faster than expected and since they tell us this information on the news you would think that the u.s gov’t and other govt’s would try to make new laws or do something to help decrease global warming. Instead they just talk about it and you never really hear about it again until a disaster happens. Another one is with the terrorists , you shouldn’t have to do what you do when you get on an airplane. Society talks about how they need to do all theses security changes to make sure that the airlines are extra safe, but what they fail to realize is that we aren’t putting in 100% making sure any type of terrorist might come through. We just look for certain characteristics and skip all the other people who might actually be a terrorists. I have noticed with some of my writings that the more credibility the author shows in their argument then the better you paper comes out and people would actually spend time reading it because they feel as though your paper is credible. And because of that now when I look at some text’s before reading it I look to see where I have gotten the source from and is it scholarly or if it is credible enough. Having a credible paper really helps out bring your argument and helps state reasons why your argument would be the side that they decided to choose.
What we don’t know is that what the media says isn’t always everything its cracked up to seem. The media lies and manipulates its listeners to think what they want them to think so that it will get in their heads that it is good on what they are telling them.
While writing for the past couple of months I have written an analysis paper on visual arguments and textual arguments. With the visual analysis I had to argue what Calvin Klein was trying to say with his fashion ads. And how daring they are , models half naked or looking like they are engaging in sexual activity. With my other analysis I analyzed Chuck Klosterman and how everything in one persons life usually happens to everyone else in life at least at one point in time. He also notices that everyone is always trying to concur life but continually fail to achieve it. When looking at ones ethos’s they have to be credible. Some authors are credible because they have research to back up their information. But now when I look at ones writing I see if they have personal experience or not. One with personal experience have very credible sources.
Rhetorical Analysis of ME!
My name is Fatmeh Barada I was born and raised in the U.S. I am a sophomore at Wayne State University. I am majoring in psychology and simultaneously in the pre-dental program. I also have been working at a dental office as a dental assistant for four years. Through my job I acquire knowledge and experience about my future career. During my free-time I enjoy spending time with my family and friends, watching movies, and reading books. In my past education history I have been very successful in my English classes. I have researched and written may paper that have gained me much experience as a writer.
I believe that through the 1020 English class at Wayne State University I have gained much knowledge and experience as a rhetorical writer. This course was set up to allow us to explore many rhetorical works, and techniques. Being a rhetorical writer I acquired the knowledge to both analyze images and texts. I have analyzed an ad for the Anti-Smoking Campaign, the book Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal by Eric Schlosser, and many abstract topics relating to the Death Penalty. Another beneficial aid I can offer is that for project five we are required to work in groups analyzing the topic of abortion. This can be an advantage because by having more than one person working on the topic of abortion we can offer different views and opinions concerning the subject of abortion. With all my past experiences on the art of rhetoric and current format for project five I can apply all my techniques and analyzing skills to explore the topic of abortion in depth.
I believe that through the 1020 English class at Wayne State University I have gained much knowledge and experience as a rhetorical writer. This course was set up to allow us to explore many rhetorical works, and techniques. Being a rhetorical writer I acquired the knowledge to both analyze images and texts. I have analyzed an ad for the Anti-Smoking Campaign, the book Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal by Eric Schlosser, and many abstract topics relating to the Death Penalty. Another beneficial aid I can offer is that for project five we are required to work in groups analyzing the topic of abortion. This can be an advantage because by having more than one person working on the topic of abortion we can offer different views and opinions concerning the subject of abortion. With all my past experiences on the art of rhetoric and current format for project five I can apply all my techniques and analyzing skills to explore the topic of abortion in depth.
Tiffany's View On Why Abortions Are Not Good
Evaluation On Abortion
Two out of every 100 women have an abortion yearly, while teenagers obtain 19% of all abortions in the United States (www.pregnantteenhelp.org). 19% is a very high number for teenagers to be getting abortions. An abortion is the killing of an innocent unborn baby that will never get to see and experience life. There are two different types of abortions, the pill or by surgical procedure. While there are some reasons to why abortions are acceptable for an example, “A female getting raped” this would be acceptable because the way the female got raped was in an involuntary way, or if it is a life or death situation, but many females abuse abortions, especially teenage females. Abortions are bad because they come with health problems, they are not seen as moral and they are very costly. There are so many negatives that comes with having an abortion, for one : killing a baby, while there are simple and other helpful ways to deal with unwanted pregnancies.
One reason why abortions are bad is because it causes health problems in women. There are many negative side effects after a female gets an abortion. Some women who have abortions end up having more mental health issues than a women who has never had an abortion ever would have (www.afterabortion.org). 10 % of women who has ever gotten an abortion suffer immediate complications while 1/5 of these complications were major complications. Also damages to the cervical happen more frequently and so does miscarriages. Studies have shown that women who tend to have an abortion once in their life has a greater chance in getting breast cancer ( Abortion Harms Women’s Health).
Another reason why abortions are bad is because they are not moral. To kill an unborn child is not seen to be moral at all, especially when the baby does not have a chance have a say in whether or not it wants to be aborted or not. Jeff Jones states in his argument abortions are immoral because fetuses have futures of value ( Abortion is Immoral-3). One would never know what their child would have ended up becoming because they made the decision in getting an abortion. Pope John Paul II states that human life is scared even at birth and conception and that the baby that has been made is a child of god, and only god can say whether or not that child should live or not ( Abortion is Immoral ).
Although raising a child can be costly, having an abortion is even more costly. As stated earlier there are two different methods of abortions, The pill and to have a surgical abortion. The abortion pill will cost you around $400- 600 dollars to get and it is only 97% effective. While getting the surgical abortions is even more costly, running anywhere from $ 400- 1300 dollars, but it is 99% effective. Just think if you were to get the pill and it failed the first time and now you have to get the surgical abortion you would have spent over $ 2000 dollars just to kill your unborn baby when you could have taken another option with your unwanted pregnancy.
Although some of us view abortions as unethical or immoral, there are a few reasons to why abortions are a good thing. The world is always going to have its pedophiles and rapist so there is always going to be some cases where a women gets rapped and ends up pregnant. If the rape victim was a young teenager she might feel to young to keep the baby or to take care of it so getting an abortion wouldn’t be seen as wrong, although there are other solutions other than abortions still. If the mother starts to have health problems throughout her pregnancy then she might feel the need to abort the baby (www.abortiontv.org) While there are some other reasons, although not very good reasons to why people feel as though abortions are a good thing. In example, some women when found out that they were pregnant feel as though they will not have enough money to raise and take care of both the baby and herself so she feels as to get an abortion. While other women feel as though if their relationship with their other half is not working out then they should get an abortion because it would be better for the both of them
www.abortiontv.org).
After viewing what an abortion is and how it is not seen as positive way in getting rid of an unwanted pregnancy there are a lot of positive solutions other than abortions such as : adoptions, there are many families in the United States who are unable to have a children because of health reasons, so the adopted families would be very thankful to raise your baby as their own instead of the female aborting it. Illegalizing abortions altogether would definitely decrease the number of pregnancies because females now know that there is no easy way out to getting rid of their unborn child. By making birth control affordable for women everywhere would also help the number of pregnancies because birth control is 99% effective if taken correctly. Also raising the age for being able to get an abortion higher then what it is now. As stated earlier 19% of women who get abortions are teenagers. Now if they were to raise that number to 20 or even 25 years of age the number of pregnancies that happen each year would decrease because there is no easy way out.
Works Cited
1. Abortion Is Immoral. John Paul II. Opposing Viewpoints: Abortion. Ed. Tamara L.
Roleff. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 1997.
2. Abortion Harms Women's Health. Ian Gentles. Opposing Viewpoints: Abortion. Ed.
James D. Torr. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 2006.
3.Abortion Is Immoral. Jeff Jones. Opposing Viewpoints: Abortion. Ed. David Haugen
and Susan Musser. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2010.
4. www.abortiontv.org
5.www.pregnantteenhelp.org
6. www.afterabortion.org
Two out of every 100 women have an abortion yearly, while teenagers obtain 19% of all abortions in the United States (www.pregnantteenhelp.org). 19% is a very high number for teenagers to be getting abortions. An abortion is the killing of an innocent unborn baby that will never get to see and experience life. There are two different types of abortions, the pill or by surgical procedure. While there are some reasons to why abortions are acceptable for an example, “A female getting raped” this would be acceptable because the way the female got raped was in an involuntary way, or if it is a life or death situation, but many females abuse abortions, especially teenage females. Abortions are bad because they come with health problems, they are not seen as moral and they are very costly. There are so many negatives that comes with having an abortion, for one : killing a baby, while there are simple and other helpful ways to deal with unwanted pregnancies.
One reason why abortions are bad is because it causes health problems in women. There are many negative side effects after a female gets an abortion. Some women who have abortions end up having more mental health issues than a women who has never had an abortion ever would have (www.afterabortion.org). 10 % of women who has ever gotten an abortion suffer immediate complications while 1/5 of these complications were major complications. Also damages to the cervical happen more frequently and so does miscarriages. Studies have shown that women who tend to have an abortion once in their life has a greater chance in getting breast cancer ( Abortion Harms Women’s Health).
Another reason why abortions are bad is because they are not moral. To kill an unborn child is not seen to be moral at all, especially when the baby does not have a chance have a say in whether or not it wants to be aborted or not. Jeff Jones states in his argument abortions are immoral because fetuses have futures of value ( Abortion is Immoral-3). One would never know what their child would have ended up becoming because they made the decision in getting an abortion. Pope John Paul II states that human life is scared even at birth and conception and that the baby that has been made is a child of god, and only god can say whether or not that child should live or not ( Abortion is Immoral ).
Although raising a child can be costly, having an abortion is even more costly. As stated earlier there are two different methods of abortions, The pill and to have a surgical abortion. The abortion pill will cost you around $400- 600 dollars to get and it is only 97% effective. While getting the surgical abortions is even more costly, running anywhere from $ 400- 1300 dollars, but it is 99% effective. Just think if you were to get the pill and it failed the first time and now you have to get the surgical abortion you would have spent over $ 2000 dollars just to kill your unborn baby when you could have taken another option with your unwanted pregnancy.
Although some of us view abortions as unethical or immoral, there are a few reasons to why abortions are a good thing. The world is always going to have its pedophiles and rapist so there is always going to be some cases where a women gets rapped and ends up pregnant. If the rape victim was a young teenager she might feel to young to keep the baby or to take care of it so getting an abortion wouldn’t be seen as wrong, although there are other solutions other than abortions still. If the mother starts to have health problems throughout her pregnancy then she might feel the need to abort the baby (www.abortiontv.org) While there are some other reasons, although not very good reasons to why people feel as though abortions are a good thing. In example, some women when found out that they were pregnant feel as though they will not have enough money to raise and take care of both the baby and herself so she feels as to get an abortion. While other women feel as though if their relationship with their other half is not working out then they should get an abortion because it would be better for the both of them
www.abortiontv.org).
After viewing what an abortion is and how it is not seen as positive way in getting rid of an unwanted pregnancy there are a lot of positive solutions other than abortions such as : adoptions, there are many families in the United States who are unable to have a children because of health reasons, so the adopted families would be very thankful to raise your baby as their own instead of the female aborting it. Illegalizing abortions altogether would definitely decrease the number of pregnancies because females now know that there is no easy way out to getting rid of their unborn child. By making birth control affordable for women everywhere would also help the number of pregnancies because birth control is 99% effective if taken correctly. Also raising the age for being able to get an abortion higher then what it is now. As stated earlier 19% of women who get abortions are teenagers. Now if they were to raise that number to 20 or even 25 years of age the number of pregnancies that happen each year would decrease because there is no easy way out.
Works Cited
1. Abortion Is Immoral. John Paul II. Opposing Viewpoints: Abortion. Ed. Tamara L.
Roleff. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 1997.
2. Abortion Harms Women's Health. Ian Gentles. Opposing Viewpoints: Abortion. Ed.
James D. Torr. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 2006.
3.Abortion Is Immoral. Jeff Jones. Opposing Viewpoints: Abortion. Ed. David Haugen
and Susan Musser. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2010.
4. www.abortiontv.org
5.www.pregnantteenhelp.org
6. www.afterabortion.org
Bryan's Cultural Analysis
Cultural Analysis
Different cultures have many varying views on what to do if women get pregnant. Some cultures feel that no matter what the situation, that a woman should go ahead and give birth. Their reasons may be based on religion, how they were raised, or just their morals. There are other cultures that feel that an abortion should be performed and their reasons may be based off of how they got pregnant or just the fact that they do not want a child. When looking at the picture above, the culture in perspective are the western women. Throughout this essay I will be analyzing how this picture connects to western people and how the picture makes the argument that abortions are good thing to them. I will also be telling the reason why this picture was created during the time that it was created.
When taking a closer look at the picture above, provided by cartoonstock.com, we can see that the picture’s color is in black and white. On the contrary the reasons for getting an abortion are not so black and white. There could be rape, incest or her getting pregnant could just be a mistake. This cartoon is definitely encouraging women to take the pill form of an abortion, rather than the medical procedure. It is also stating that abortions are alright, according to western people. You can tell because the woman on the left is smiling very confidently, while the one on the right has the interested look on her face, as if she just made a new discovery. The woman on the right is getting re-assurance and being told not to worry about getting pregnant because she can just get an abortion. The pill is quick and easy and has no need for surgery preparation and anesthesia. The main argument being made is that women should not have a child if they do not want to. Note the large print above the picture: “It’s the pill you have when you haven’t had your pill.” This picture is essentially announcing to all women that if they forgot to take their birth control pill and become pregnant, simply take the abortion pill. If a woman is taking birth control, this means that she does not wish to have a child in the first place. So if this woman gets pregnant because she “hasn’t had her pill,” then it makes sense for her to get an abortion.
So the picture is saying if a woman of western culture takes birth control and forgets a pill, then she should take the abortion pill. If someone looked at this picture during the current times they would agree with what the picture is telling white women to do. The economy is on a downhill slope, gas prices are rising, and money is becoming scarce. A person may feel that those factors are a good enough reasons to not have a child because if one is born into a family now, that could lead them to poverty. This means that the child will not have health care and will most likely get sick and eventually die. If someone looked at this picture 30 years ago, they may disagree with this because the economy was doing considerably better than it is now. So if a woman were to have a child 30 years ago, she should have money to support it. So this picture was deliberately created in 2007 because this it was a time of war in Iraq and lots of money was getting allocated toward supporting soldiers
In conclusion the picture connects to women of western decent who have taken birth control and have forgotten a pill. It is a part of western culture to have their women take the pill form of an abortion rather than the surgical procedure because of safety precautions. The picture was created in 2007 because it was a time of war times and money was short. So it encouraged western women to get abortions during times of war.
Works Cited
I. Cartoonstock, 2007.Web. 14 April 2010
Different cultures have many varying views on what to do if women get pregnant. Some cultures feel that no matter what the situation, that a woman should go ahead and give birth. Their reasons may be based on religion, how they were raised, or just their morals. There are other cultures that feel that an abortion should be performed and their reasons may be based off of how they got pregnant or just the fact that they do not want a child. When looking at the picture above, the culture in perspective are the western women. Throughout this essay I will be analyzing how this picture connects to western people and how the picture makes the argument that abortions are good thing to them. I will also be telling the reason why this picture was created during the time that it was created.
When taking a closer look at the picture above, provided by cartoonstock.com, we can see that the picture’s color is in black and white. On the contrary the reasons for getting an abortion are not so black and white. There could be rape, incest or her getting pregnant could just be a mistake. This cartoon is definitely encouraging women to take the pill form of an abortion, rather than the medical procedure. It is also stating that abortions are alright, according to western people. You can tell because the woman on the left is smiling very confidently, while the one on the right has the interested look on her face, as if she just made a new discovery. The woman on the right is getting re-assurance and being told not to worry about getting pregnant because she can just get an abortion. The pill is quick and easy and has no need for surgery preparation and anesthesia. The main argument being made is that women should not have a child if they do not want to. Note the large print above the picture: “It’s the pill you have when you haven’t had your pill.” This picture is essentially announcing to all women that if they forgot to take their birth control pill and become pregnant, simply take the abortion pill. If a woman is taking birth control, this means that she does not wish to have a child in the first place. So if this woman gets pregnant because she “hasn’t had her pill,” then it makes sense for her to get an abortion.
So the picture is saying if a woman of western culture takes birth control and forgets a pill, then she should take the abortion pill. If someone looked at this picture during the current times they would agree with what the picture is telling white women to do. The economy is on a downhill slope, gas prices are rising, and money is becoming scarce. A person may feel that those factors are a good enough reasons to not have a child because if one is born into a family now, that could lead them to poverty. This means that the child will not have health care and will most likely get sick and eventually die. If someone looked at this picture 30 years ago, they may disagree with this because the economy was doing considerably better than it is now. So if a woman were to have a child 30 years ago, she should have money to support it. So this picture was deliberately created in 2007 because this it was a time of war in Iraq and lots of money was getting allocated toward supporting soldiers
In conclusion the picture connects to women of western decent who have taken birth control and have forgotten a pill. It is a part of western culture to have their women take the pill form of an abortion rather than the surgical procedure because of safety precautions. The picture was created in 2007 because it was a time of war times and money was short. So it encouraged western women to get abortions during times of war.
Works Cited
I. Cartoonstock, 2007.Web. 14 April 2010
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
All About Bryan
My name is Bryan Barnette and I am currently an 18 year old Wayne state University Freshman. Some my hobbies are playing basketball and chess, eating and going out on dates with my girlfriend. My major is electrical engineering. I knew I wanted to be an engineer because of my early childhood experiences with lego blocks. I would put something together and then destroy it. Then my goal would be to restore the legos back to the form that they once were. Similarly engineers always find a problem and try to solve it. In my case, I created my own problems. I grew up on the west side of Detroit on the “infamous” street by the name of 8 mile. I attended high school at Cass Technical High School and graduated with a 3.46 overall GPA. Math and science have always been my strong points and not so much writing. Even with that being the case I am still a pretty decent writer and I have been pretty successful in many of my writing courses.
I currently have already done analysis on a couple of works. I have done an analysis on one of Al Gore’s books An Inconvenient Truth. His book is arguing that global warming is going to cause the world to come to an end. Along with textual analysis of an argument, I have also analyzed visual arguments. I have analyzed a cigarette advertisement and went into great detail on how the picture made its argument. I not only analyzed the words and the pictures, but I looked at the situation and the color of the words. I looked at how the colors in the picture contrasted to make certain things stick out and many more things. Along with textual and visual analysis, I have also done evaluations and proposals, specifically on the subject of abortions. With my extensive research on abortion, It could be concluded that I am an abortion expert. In the future I plan to continue my analysis of other peoples’ work. It is quite entertaining to read or look at a piece of work and after that, picking it apart, piece by piece. If I have time, with my busy engineering schedule, I may perhaps attempt to write a couple of books. If I do happen to write a book, it will be on the subject of global warming and how it is going to make the world come to an end. The warning signs are everywhere and yet people still ignore them.
I feel that today’s media is using famous people to influence people in society into actions, now more than ever. I don’t think you can flip a television channel without seeing a commercial with a famous person in it nowadays. If Nike wants a shoe to sell, what do they do? They put a picture of Lebron James, a basketball superstar, on a poster that says “Wear These Nikes,” and two days later half of the United States has those Nike shoes on. Another example would be the Hanes underwear commercials with Michael Jordan and Cuba Gooding Jr. Cuba tells Mike that he has his underwear on and now everyone has Mike’s underwear on. Today’s media also lies or stretches the truth about a lot of things that occur. One prime example of the media hiding information would be a real life situation that occurred in my neighborhood. There was a shooting that occurred that was covered by the local news station. The woman in the broadcast stated that the shooting was drug related, but there was no evidence of drugs ever even being at the scene of the shooting. That was a bold- faced lie and in fact the shooting was due to an attempted car- jacking. So why do news networks and many other forms of media lie? I believe their reason behind it is to scare the crap out of people and to get a few more views. Those views help them earn a little more pocket change. And that is the problem with society today. Everyone is so money hungry and will do whatever it takes to get a little extra pocket change. The media these days is so corrupt but no one seems to care. People probably see the news more as entertainment rather than information.
I currently have already done analysis on a couple of works. I have done an analysis on one of Al Gore’s books An Inconvenient Truth. His book is arguing that global warming is going to cause the world to come to an end. Along with textual analysis of an argument, I have also analyzed visual arguments. I have analyzed a cigarette advertisement and went into great detail on how the picture made its argument. I not only analyzed the words and the pictures, but I looked at the situation and the color of the words. I looked at how the colors in the picture contrasted to make certain things stick out and many more things. Along with textual and visual analysis, I have also done evaluations and proposals, specifically on the subject of abortions. With my extensive research on abortion, It could be concluded that I am an abortion expert. In the future I plan to continue my analysis of other peoples’ work. It is quite entertaining to read or look at a piece of work and after that, picking it apart, piece by piece. If I have time, with my busy engineering schedule, I may perhaps attempt to write a couple of books. If I do happen to write a book, it will be on the subject of global warming and how it is going to make the world come to an end. The warning signs are everywhere and yet people still ignore them.
I feel that today’s media is using famous people to influence people in society into actions, now more than ever. I don’t think you can flip a television channel without seeing a commercial with a famous person in it nowadays. If Nike wants a shoe to sell, what do they do? They put a picture of Lebron James, a basketball superstar, on a poster that says “Wear These Nikes,” and two days later half of the United States has those Nike shoes on. Another example would be the Hanes underwear commercials with Michael Jordan and Cuba Gooding Jr. Cuba tells Mike that he has his underwear on and now everyone has Mike’s underwear on. Today’s media also lies or stretches the truth about a lot of things that occur. One prime example of the media hiding information would be a real life situation that occurred in my neighborhood. There was a shooting that occurred that was covered by the local news station. The woman in the broadcast stated that the shooting was drug related, but there was no evidence of drugs ever even being at the scene of the shooting. That was a bold- faced lie and in fact the shooting was due to an attempted car- jacking. So why do news networks and many other forms of media lie? I believe their reason behind it is to scare the crap out of people and to get a few more views. Those views help them earn a little more pocket change. And that is the problem with society today. Everyone is so money hungry and will do whatever it takes to get a little extra pocket change. The media these days is so corrupt but no one seems to care. People probably see the news more as entertainment rather than information.
Effects on Womens Health After Abortion
Abortion Harms Women's Health
Table of Contents: Further Readings
"In North America ... there is a pronounced bias against reporting bad news about induced abortion."
Ian Gentles is a professor of history at York University's Glendon College in Toronto and the coauthor of Women's Health After Abortion: The Medical and Psychological Evidence, which argues that the health risks of abortion are downplayed in the United States. In the following viewpoint Gentles summarizes some of the main arguments of his book. According to him, abortion is associated with an increased risk of breast and other cancers, sterility, pelvic inflammatory disease, and complications with future pregnancies. Gentles believes that reporting on the health risks of abortion has become taboo in the United States because special interests do not want abortion banned.
As you read, consider the following questions:
1. How much greater was the risk of breast cancer among women who had abortions compared with those who did not, according to the study by the National Cancer Institute that Gentles cites?
2. How much more likely are women to have a premature birth if they have previously had an abortion, according to the author?
3. What is the goal of most of the researchers who conduct post-abortion research, in Gentles's opinion?
[In 2002] a great deal of anxiety was provoked in the media by the publication of a medical report on the long-term consequences of hormone replacement therapy for women. Among the several negative effects of HRT, the one that caused the greatest distress was the increased risk—about 25 per cent—of breast cancer. The incidence of breast cancer among women has certainly risen alarmingly in the past three decades. Many explanations for this rise have been suggested: a more polluted environment, changes in diet, smoking, the postponement of childbearing, the contraceptive pill, and other drug therapies.
The Link Between Abortion and Breast Cancer
But the media have paid almost no attention to the many studies that have documented a significantly higher incidence of breast cancer among women who have abortions, in particular those who abort their first pregnancy before the age of 20. At least 27 studies in ten countries have discovered an increased risk of 30 per cent—significantly higher than the increased risk of 25 per cent reported in the single study of the effects of HRT.
Strange to say, the authors and sponsors of several of these studies have shied away from the implications of their findings. The National Cancer Institute in the U.S., for example, sponsored a major study which showed a 36 per cent increased risk (rising to a disturbing 50 per cent among women under 20 who abort their first pregnancy) of breast cancer among women who undergo abortions. In fact, given that young women who carry their first pregnancy to term reduce their chances of breast cancer by 30 per cent, the consequences are even more dramatic. The lifetime chances of a woman in North America being diagnosed with breast cancer are currently about ten per cent. A woman who has a child before age 20 has a seven per cent chance. On the other hand, if she aborts that first early pregnancy, she more than doubles her lifetime chances to fifteen per cent. Yet the National Cancer Institute, and other establishment voices such as the prestigious New England Journal of Medicine stoutly continue to deny that there is any link between abortion and breast cancer.
Curiously, the establishment on the other side of the ocean is much less reluctant to recognize the link. In April 2000, Britain's Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists acknowledged that studies demonstrating the abortion-breast cancer link "could not be disregarded." Writing in the London Times a year later, Dr. Thomas Stuttaford declared that "an unusually high proportion" of the women diagnosed with breast cancer in the U.K. each year "had an abortion before eventually starting a family. Such women are up to four times more likely to develop breast cancer."
There are solid physiological reasons for the association between induced abortion and the later development of breast cancer which have to do with the hormonal effects of pregnancy on a woman's breast tissue. A surge of the hormone oestradiol at conception reaches twentyfold in the first trimester, triggering an explosive growth of breast tissue—a period when breast cells are most likely to be affected by carcinogens. When a woman completes her first full pregnancy, further hormonal changes propel these newly produced breast cells through a state of differentiation, a natural maturing process that greatly reduces the risk of future breast cancer. An early, abrupt termination of pregnancy by abortion arrests this process before the cancer-reducing evolution of hormone release can occur, leaving a large population of dangerously-stimulated breast tissue cells in place, enormously raising future cancer risk. On the other hand, "... an early first, full-term pregnancy would provide the greatest protection against breast cancer by drastically reducing, early on, the presence of undifferentiated and hence vulnerable breast cells, thereby decreasing the risk of subsequent transformation." A fascinating animal study supports this line of reasoning. Two groups of rats were exposed to a chemical carcinogen before mating. The group that carried a first pregnancy to term developed mammary tumours at a rate of six per cent. The group whose pregnancies were aborted, however, developed mammary tumours at an astounding rate of 78 per cent.
These are among several dramatic findings dredged up from the obscurity of scientific journals and presented in Women's Health After Abortion: The Medical and Psychological Evidence, a new book I co-authored with Elizabeth Ring-Cassidy. In it, we review and summarize over 500 studies which have appeared in medical and professional journals, most of them over the past twenty years. What follows here is a brief overview of our work.
Other Cancers and Maternal Mortality
Cancers of the cervix, ovaries and rectums. Research in this area is in its early stages, but a few studies from the past decade point to a link between abortion and subsequent cancers of the reproductive system, as well as colorectal cancer. Cervical cancer in particular seems to be directly associated with induced abortion. Studies of cancer of the ovary have presented conflicting evidence. A strong association has been discovered between abortion and cancer of the rectum. What is remarkable is that with the increase in cancers of the breast and reproductive system in women over the past thirty years, there has as yet been so little interest in investigating the link with induced abortion. Despite the overwhelming weight of the studies pointing to such a link, their conclusions have been generally ignored by the research establishments in North America. The rationale for this may be that for some it is more important for abortion to remain accessible than for women to be informed about a clear threat to their health. Thus, the politicized and controversial nature of the subject, and the desire of some powerful groups to keep abortion "safe, simple, and easily available," have militated against the objective consideration of data pointing strongly to a link between abortion and various cancers.
Maternal mortality. In both Canada and the U.S. there is a general and systematic underreporting of maternal deaths, whether from abortion, pregnancy, or during delivery. Not least among the reasons for this is the fact that more and more abortions are now performed in free-standing clinics. A woman whose post-abortion condition is life threatening generally goes to a hospital, not back to the clinic. The attending emergency room doctor may not record a subsequent death as resulting from an abortion. The practice of coding the immediate rather than the underlying cause of death also causes underreporting: an induced abortion may result in bleeding, embolism, cardiac arrest or infection, or it may lead to a subsequent ectopic pregnancy. But the death certificate of a woman who dies from these conditions may make no reference to abortion.
A recent, large-scale Scandinavian study found that within one year of the end of a pregnancy, women who had induced abortions suffered a mortality rate that was almost four times greater than that for women who delivered their babies. And their rate of suicide was six times greater. A recent study in Wales found that women who had induced abortions were 2.25 times more likely to commit suicide than women admitted for normal delivery. A large-scale California study just recently published reported similar findings. These studies, using record linkage and involving many hundreds of thousands of cases, authoritatively refute the oft-repeated fiction that induced abortion is safer for women than giving birth.
Ectopic pregnancy. While overall health has generally improved in the past century, there has been a disturbing rise in ectopic pregnancies [in which a fertilized egg implants outside the uterus, usually in the fallopian tubes]. Between 1970 and 1990 they doubled, trebled or quadrupled in frequency, depending on the country, so that they now account for two per cent of all pregnancies in the areas studied. The rise of ectopic pregnancy coincides almost exactly with the steep rise in the frequency of induced abortion during the same period. Studies from Italy, Japan, Yugoslavia and the U.S. have documented a much higher risk of ectopic pregnancy among women who have had one or more abortions. Yet the authors of an American study that uncovered a 160 per cent increased risk arrived at the strange conclusion that abortion "does not carry a large excess risk" of ectopic pregnancy. This is one of many examples in the literature of abortion researchers making statements in the abstracts or conclusions of their articles that flatly contradict their findings.
PID and Other Risks
Uterine perforations, pelvic inflammatory disease, and infertility. Among the other risks involved in surgical abortion are uterine perforation, uterine adhesions, retained fetal fragments and infections that lead to pelvic inflammatory disease (PID). PID is now epidemic in Canada and much of the rest of the world. Nearly 100,000 women contract it each year in Canada alone. The disease is difficult and expensive to treat, and causes infertility in women. The link between PID and abortion is well established in the sense that women who undergo surgical abortions suffer a much higher incidence of PID afterwards. The link is even stronger among women who have had two or more abortions.
Pain and abortion. Some abortion clinics attempt to reassure their patients that the pain they are about to suffer will resemble nothing greater than heavy menstrual cramps. A large study conducted in Montreal paints a different picture. Pain is the most subjective of experiences, yet when the pain scores of these abortion patients were checked against other acute and chronic pain syndromes, "they were found to be higher than fractures, sprains, neuralgia or arthritis, and equal to those of amputees experiencing phantom limb pain and patients with cancer." When it comes to mental pain, abortion is often touted as bringing relief from the depression caused by pregnancy. Not necessarily so. The Montreal study found that 50 per cent of the women who had high depression scores "remained clinically depressed and anxious two weeks after the procedure."
Chemical abortions. Chemical or drug-induced abortions have been hailed in some quarters as a less traumatic solution to an unwanted pregnancy than surgical abortion. Yet these are not without their own difficulties. A variety of studies have found failure rates ranging from 6 to 45 per cent, necessitating a second, surgical abortion. There are unpleasant side effects, including prolonged bleeding, diarrhea, fevers and nausea, as well as the inconvenience of several visits to the doctor and the lack of immediate confirmation of the success of the procedure. Typically, the abortion is not triggered until twenty-four days after the drug has been administered. Furthermore, the pain is reported to be even greater than surgical abortion.
Risks to future children. The most recent studies point to an approximately 85 per cent increase in premature (or "very preterm," meaning less than 33 weeks' gestation) births to women who have had a previous induced abortion. This risk increases sharply with every additional abortion that a woman undergoes. Premature infants suffer a very high incidence of disability. Their rate of cerebral palsy for example, is thirty-eight times greater than that of the general population. Induced abortion, therefore, has appalling implications for women who subsequently wish to bear a child. It is the direct cause of many thousands more cases of cerebral palsy in North America than otherwise would have occurred....
Covering Up the Bad News
Much post-abortion research is conducted by those committed to preserving unrestricted access to induced abortion. Their tendency is to cite only the work of those who share their political outlook on the question. Most post-abortion research is short-term, with the result that long-term consequences tend to be ignored. Many women, especially those who abort late in pregnancy, are unwilling to participate in follow-up studies. Finally, in North America, unlike in European and other countries, there is a pronounced bias against reporting bad news about induced abortion.
In a surprising number of North American studies data on abortion are downplayed or omitted from the discussion or conclusion sections of the paper. Here are a few examples from the highly contentious field of breast cancer and abortion. In 1995 Lipworth and colleagues found that there was a 100 per cent increased risk of breast cancer for women whose first pregnancy ended in abortion. In the discussion section the author downplayed this increase as "at most statistically marginal." In another study Ewertz and Duffy found that induced abortions were associated with an almost fourfold increased risk of breast cancer. In the discussion section this finding was not commented upon, the authors confining themselves to the observation that "pregnancies must go to term to exert a protective effect against breast cancer." A study by Daling and colleagues found a 2.5 risk—in other words a 150 per cent increase in the risk of breast cancer for women whose first pregnancy was aborted before age eighteen—but in their Discussion Section said that their findings "give only slight support to the hypothesis that there is an increase in breast cancer incidence among women of reproductive age."
The investigation of abortion's after-effects is also bedeviled by coding and diagnostic problems. International Disease Classification codes prevent cross-referencing between ectopic pregnancy and induced abortion, even though a clear link has been demonstrated. Pelvic inflammatory disease or Asherman's Syndrome (intra-uterine adhesions, a complication of surgical curettage) may arise from an abortion but not be identified in that way either.
All the adverse effects of abortion put together affect perhaps twenty per cent of the women who undergo the procedure. Though a minority, they are a substantial one. The question that Women's Health After Abortion raises is: Are women entitled to know about the risks? Or are those who draw attention to them merely sowing unnecessary despondency and alarm, as some would claim? Fortunately the courts have already established that informed consent must be an essential ingredient of good patient care. Elective procedures—and induced abortion is an elective procedure—require from the physician a greater degree of disclosure than emergency procedures. Common but minor risks must be disclosed. Extremely rare risks must also be disclosed if they have serious or fatal consequences.
The Right to Make an Informed Choice
I co-authored this study because of a conviction that the increased risks associated with induced abortion—breast cancer, death, sterility, ectopic pregnancy, pelvic inflammatory disease, emotional distress, harm to subsequent children, the impact on partners and other children—are serious enough to merit dissemination beyond the pages of professional journals. If women have the right to choose, surely they also have the right to make their choice an informed one.
Source Citation:
Gentles, Ian. "Abortion Harms Women's Health." Opposing Viewpoints: Abortion. Ed. James D. Torr. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 2006. Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center. Gale. Wayne State University Library System. 13 Apr. 2010.
Table of Contents: Further Readings
"In North America ... there is a pronounced bias against reporting bad news about induced abortion."
Ian Gentles is a professor of history at York University's Glendon College in Toronto and the coauthor of Women's Health After Abortion: The Medical and Psychological Evidence, which argues that the health risks of abortion are downplayed in the United States. In the following viewpoint Gentles summarizes some of the main arguments of his book. According to him, abortion is associated with an increased risk of breast and other cancers, sterility, pelvic inflammatory disease, and complications with future pregnancies. Gentles believes that reporting on the health risks of abortion has become taboo in the United States because special interests do not want abortion banned.
As you read, consider the following questions:
1. How much greater was the risk of breast cancer among women who had abortions compared with those who did not, according to the study by the National Cancer Institute that Gentles cites?
2. How much more likely are women to have a premature birth if they have previously had an abortion, according to the author?
3. What is the goal of most of the researchers who conduct post-abortion research, in Gentles's opinion?
[In 2002] a great deal of anxiety was provoked in the media by the publication of a medical report on the long-term consequences of hormone replacement therapy for women. Among the several negative effects of HRT, the one that caused the greatest distress was the increased risk—about 25 per cent—of breast cancer. The incidence of breast cancer among women has certainly risen alarmingly in the past three decades. Many explanations for this rise have been suggested: a more polluted environment, changes in diet, smoking, the postponement of childbearing, the contraceptive pill, and other drug therapies.
The Link Between Abortion and Breast Cancer
But the media have paid almost no attention to the many studies that have documented a significantly higher incidence of breast cancer among women who have abortions, in particular those who abort their first pregnancy before the age of 20. At least 27 studies in ten countries have discovered an increased risk of 30 per cent—significantly higher than the increased risk of 25 per cent reported in the single study of the effects of HRT.
Strange to say, the authors and sponsors of several of these studies have shied away from the implications of their findings. The National Cancer Institute in the U.S., for example, sponsored a major study which showed a 36 per cent increased risk (rising to a disturbing 50 per cent among women under 20 who abort their first pregnancy) of breast cancer among women who undergo abortions. In fact, given that young women who carry their first pregnancy to term reduce their chances of breast cancer by 30 per cent, the consequences are even more dramatic. The lifetime chances of a woman in North America being diagnosed with breast cancer are currently about ten per cent. A woman who has a child before age 20 has a seven per cent chance. On the other hand, if she aborts that first early pregnancy, she more than doubles her lifetime chances to fifteen per cent. Yet the National Cancer Institute, and other establishment voices such as the prestigious New England Journal of Medicine stoutly continue to deny that there is any link between abortion and breast cancer.
Curiously, the establishment on the other side of the ocean is much less reluctant to recognize the link. In April 2000, Britain's Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists acknowledged that studies demonstrating the abortion-breast cancer link "could not be disregarded." Writing in the London Times a year later, Dr. Thomas Stuttaford declared that "an unusually high proportion" of the women diagnosed with breast cancer in the U.K. each year "had an abortion before eventually starting a family. Such women are up to four times more likely to develop breast cancer."
There are solid physiological reasons for the association between induced abortion and the later development of breast cancer which have to do with the hormonal effects of pregnancy on a woman's breast tissue. A surge of the hormone oestradiol at conception reaches twentyfold in the first trimester, triggering an explosive growth of breast tissue—a period when breast cells are most likely to be affected by carcinogens. When a woman completes her first full pregnancy, further hormonal changes propel these newly produced breast cells through a state of differentiation, a natural maturing process that greatly reduces the risk of future breast cancer. An early, abrupt termination of pregnancy by abortion arrests this process before the cancer-reducing evolution of hormone release can occur, leaving a large population of dangerously-stimulated breast tissue cells in place, enormously raising future cancer risk. On the other hand, "... an early first, full-term pregnancy would provide the greatest protection against breast cancer by drastically reducing, early on, the presence of undifferentiated and hence vulnerable breast cells, thereby decreasing the risk of subsequent transformation." A fascinating animal study supports this line of reasoning. Two groups of rats were exposed to a chemical carcinogen before mating. The group that carried a first pregnancy to term developed mammary tumours at a rate of six per cent. The group whose pregnancies were aborted, however, developed mammary tumours at an astounding rate of 78 per cent.
These are among several dramatic findings dredged up from the obscurity of scientific journals and presented in Women's Health After Abortion: The Medical and Psychological Evidence, a new book I co-authored with Elizabeth Ring-Cassidy. In it, we review and summarize over 500 studies which have appeared in medical and professional journals, most of them over the past twenty years. What follows here is a brief overview of our work.
Other Cancers and Maternal Mortality
Cancers of the cervix, ovaries and rectums. Research in this area is in its early stages, but a few studies from the past decade point to a link between abortion and subsequent cancers of the reproductive system, as well as colorectal cancer. Cervical cancer in particular seems to be directly associated with induced abortion. Studies of cancer of the ovary have presented conflicting evidence. A strong association has been discovered between abortion and cancer of the rectum. What is remarkable is that with the increase in cancers of the breast and reproductive system in women over the past thirty years, there has as yet been so little interest in investigating the link with induced abortion. Despite the overwhelming weight of the studies pointing to such a link, their conclusions have been generally ignored by the research establishments in North America. The rationale for this may be that for some it is more important for abortion to remain accessible than for women to be informed about a clear threat to their health. Thus, the politicized and controversial nature of the subject, and the desire of some powerful groups to keep abortion "safe, simple, and easily available," have militated against the objective consideration of data pointing strongly to a link between abortion and various cancers.
Maternal mortality. In both Canada and the U.S. there is a general and systematic underreporting of maternal deaths, whether from abortion, pregnancy, or during delivery. Not least among the reasons for this is the fact that more and more abortions are now performed in free-standing clinics. A woman whose post-abortion condition is life threatening generally goes to a hospital, not back to the clinic. The attending emergency room doctor may not record a subsequent death as resulting from an abortion. The practice of coding the immediate rather than the underlying cause of death also causes underreporting: an induced abortion may result in bleeding, embolism, cardiac arrest or infection, or it may lead to a subsequent ectopic pregnancy. But the death certificate of a woman who dies from these conditions may make no reference to abortion.
A recent, large-scale Scandinavian study found that within one year of the end of a pregnancy, women who had induced abortions suffered a mortality rate that was almost four times greater than that for women who delivered their babies. And their rate of suicide was six times greater. A recent study in Wales found that women who had induced abortions were 2.25 times more likely to commit suicide than women admitted for normal delivery. A large-scale California study just recently published reported similar findings. These studies, using record linkage and involving many hundreds of thousands of cases, authoritatively refute the oft-repeated fiction that induced abortion is safer for women than giving birth.
Ectopic pregnancy. While overall health has generally improved in the past century, there has been a disturbing rise in ectopic pregnancies [in which a fertilized egg implants outside the uterus, usually in the fallopian tubes]. Between 1970 and 1990 they doubled, trebled or quadrupled in frequency, depending on the country, so that they now account for two per cent of all pregnancies in the areas studied. The rise of ectopic pregnancy coincides almost exactly with the steep rise in the frequency of induced abortion during the same period. Studies from Italy, Japan, Yugoslavia and the U.S. have documented a much higher risk of ectopic pregnancy among women who have had one or more abortions. Yet the authors of an American study that uncovered a 160 per cent increased risk arrived at the strange conclusion that abortion "does not carry a large excess risk" of ectopic pregnancy. This is one of many examples in the literature of abortion researchers making statements in the abstracts or conclusions of their articles that flatly contradict their findings.
PID and Other Risks
Uterine perforations, pelvic inflammatory disease, and infertility. Among the other risks involved in surgical abortion are uterine perforation, uterine adhesions, retained fetal fragments and infections that lead to pelvic inflammatory disease (PID). PID is now epidemic in Canada and much of the rest of the world. Nearly 100,000 women contract it each year in Canada alone. The disease is difficult and expensive to treat, and causes infertility in women. The link between PID and abortion is well established in the sense that women who undergo surgical abortions suffer a much higher incidence of PID afterwards. The link is even stronger among women who have had two or more abortions.
Pain and abortion. Some abortion clinics attempt to reassure their patients that the pain they are about to suffer will resemble nothing greater than heavy menstrual cramps. A large study conducted in Montreal paints a different picture. Pain is the most subjective of experiences, yet when the pain scores of these abortion patients were checked against other acute and chronic pain syndromes, "they were found to be higher than fractures, sprains, neuralgia or arthritis, and equal to those of amputees experiencing phantom limb pain and patients with cancer." When it comes to mental pain, abortion is often touted as bringing relief from the depression caused by pregnancy. Not necessarily so. The Montreal study found that 50 per cent of the women who had high depression scores "remained clinically depressed and anxious two weeks after the procedure."
Chemical abortions. Chemical or drug-induced abortions have been hailed in some quarters as a less traumatic solution to an unwanted pregnancy than surgical abortion. Yet these are not without their own difficulties. A variety of studies have found failure rates ranging from 6 to 45 per cent, necessitating a second, surgical abortion. There are unpleasant side effects, including prolonged bleeding, diarrhea, fevers and nausea, as well as the inconvenience of several visits to the doctor and the lack of immediate confirmation of the success of the procedure. Typically, the abortion is not triggered until twenty-four days after the drug has been administered. Furthermore, the pain is reported to be even greater than surgical abortion.
Risks to future children. The most recent studies point to an approximately 85 per cent increase in premature (or "very preterm," meaning less than 33 weeks' gestation) births to women who have had a previous induced abortion. This risk increases sharply with every additional abortion that a woman undergoes. Premature infants suffer a very high incidence of disability. Their rate of cerebral palsy for example, is thirty-eight times greater than that of the general population. Induced abortion, therefore, has appalling implications for women who subsequently wish to bear a child. It is the direct cause of many thousands more cases of cerebral palsy in North America than otherwise would have occurred....
Covering Up the Bad News
Much post-abortion research is conducted by those committed to preserving unrestricted access to induced abortion. Their tendency is to cite only the work of those who share their political outlook on the question. Most post-abortion research is short-term, with the result that long-term consequences tend to be ignored. Many women, especially those who abort late in pregnancy, are unwilling to participate in follow-up studies. Finally, in North America, unlike in European and other countries, there is a pronounced bias against reporting bad news about induced abortion.
In a surprising number of North American studies data on abortion are downplayed or omitted from the discussion or conclusion sections of the paper. Here are a few examples from the highly contentious field of breast cancer and abortion. In 1995 Lipworth and colleagues found that there was a 100 per cent increased risk of breast cancer for women whose first pregnancy ended in abortion. In the discussion section the author downplayed this increase as "at most statistically marginal." In another study Ewertz and Duffy found that induced abortions were associated with an almost fourfold increased risk of breast cancer. In the discussion section this finding was not commented upon, the authors confining themselves to the observation that "pregnancies must go to term to exert a protective effect against breast cancer." A study by Daling and colleagues found a 2.5 risk—in other words a 150 per cent increase in the risk of breast cancer for women whose first pregnancy was aborted before age eighteen—but in their Discussion Section said that their findings "give only slight support to the hypothesis that there is an increase in breast cancer incidence among women of reproductive age."
The investigation of abortion's after-effects is also bedeviled by coding and diagnostic problems. International Disease Classification codes prevent cross-referencing between ectopic pregnancy and induced abortion, even though a clear link has been demonstrated. Pelvic inflammatory disease or Asherman's Syndrome (intra-uterine adhesions, a complication of surgical curettage) may arise from an abortion but not be identified in that way either.
All the adverse effects of abortion put together affect perhaps twenty per cent of the women who undergo the procedure. Though a minority, they are a substantial one. The question that Women's Health After Abortion raises is: Are women entitled to know about the risks? Or are those who draw attention to them merely sowing unnecessary despondency and alarm, as some would claim? Fortunately the courts have already established that informed consent must be an essential ingredient of good patient care. Elective procedures—and induced abortion is an elective procedure—require from the physician a greater degree of disclosure than emergency procedures. Common but minor risks must be disclosed. Extremely rare risks must also be disclosed if they have serious or fatal consequences.
The Right to Make an Informed Choice
I co-authored this study because of a conviction that the increased risks associated with induced abortion—breast cancer, death, sterility, ectopic pregnancy, pelvic inflammatory disease, emotional distress, harm to subsequent children, the impact on partners and other children—are serious enough to merit dissemination beyond the pages of professional journals. If women have the right to choose, surely they also have the right to make their choice an informed one.
Source Citation:
Gentles, Ian. "Abortion Harms Women's Health." Opposing Viewpoints: Abortion. Ed. James D. Torr. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 2006. Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center. Gale. Wayne State University Library System. 13 Apr. 2010
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