My favorite formal assignment we had this year was our Social Issues Essay. I liked this assignment, because similar to the discussion board post, we were able to choose our own topics. I like this style of writing because I feel like I have more control over how my paper turns out. I also feel like I am free to write how I want because there are no specific boundaries or rubric. I enjoyed writing about somehting I was passionate about, rather than something I did not have any interest in. This helped me in making my paper better because, since it was something I wanted to write about I spent more time on it by researching and taking my time planning and writing it. Overall this was the best paper I have written this semester.
Grace Stevens
C&C / Social Issues Essay
Mrs. Williams
November 9, 2016
Abortion: Should Women Be Given This Right?
As Americans, we are lucky to be given many rights that most countries do not have. People from all walks of life should be given equal rights and their rights should not be limited, this includes rights dealing with choice. Dating back to the 1960s, abortion rights have been disputed, but never to the immensity that it is argued now. The government should not have the power to take away abortion rights given to women, but should instead make people more aware of other options or limit the types of abortion women can have.
The social issue of abortion is an issue that has not only been argued in politics, but has been argued throughout America, resulting in a morally divided nation. Some people feel like abortion should be abolished, others feel it should be limited and the rest believe that it should be able to be done freely: “Society has often associated the issue of abortion within the larger context of determining when life truly begins. And, at what point in a woman’s pregnancy does the fetus have the legal rights of a human being? This, in turn, leads to the question of the fetus’s rights versus the woman’s right to choose and determine issues that deal with her body”, (Dionisio) Many aspects of the argument comes up, including what is the definition of abortion. Different sides of the issue arise; dependent on these different definitions.
One of the roots of this argument is the Pro-life and Pro-choice movements: “The public’s division over abortion stems from conflicting views on personal freedom- a right to privacy and a right to religious or moral convictions surrounding the belief that life begins at conception”, (Tamney). The Pro-Life movement are people who are anti-abortionists, that believe abortion is wrong and the laws should be changed to comply with this opinion. Most want abortion abolished, except for cases of rape or incest, which is a very conservative view. Advocates of pro-life are usually completely against abortion, religious, and a part of the republican party. As an effect, the pro-life, which is mostly conservative, opens up the opposition's view of choice.
The Pro-Choice movement believes that women should have the right to abortion, if they choose to do so. They think that it is the woman's choice to decide what she should do with her body, and that the government should not have a say in that matter. “Pro-choice activists tend to be highly educated women who are pursuing careers. They have not rejected motherhood, but they see it as one of the number of roles, and they tend to have just one or two well-planned children. Pro-life activists, on the other hand, are somewhat less educated, less well-off women who to be housewives and have larger families. They are also more religious than pro-choice women”, (Staggenborg, pg50). These basic groupings have an effect on the decisions people make, their moral beliefs, and even their political beliefs.
Along with moral beliefs, the controversy over abortion also falls in the political issue category and has actually been a main issue in politics for a while. “While 53% of Americans identify themselves as pro-choice, only 40% of the population supports abortion for any reason during the first trimester of a pregnancy. Furthermore, 53% of Americans feel that abortion is morally wrong”, (Gallup). The majority of people pick a side when it comes to this issue, so the two parties have almost an even number of people. Republican voters are conservative, and more religious so they side with Pro-life, while the Democratic voters are less religious, so they side with Pro-choice. One of the main question people come across when addressing this debate is “Should the government be able to take away or limit this right?”. How people answer some of these questions and what they know about the subject affect their opinions and even though not all voters stick to these normalities, this debate, and how candidates say they will deal with this issue affects elections greatly.
There are a lot of things about the issue that people do not know. This changes their perception of the issue and forms their opinions. One of them is the fact that most people who view abortion as wrong say it is murder. However, if it is murder than if it was made illegal, the women who went through with abortion illegally would have to be sent to prison for life or given the death penalty. Another thing people do not know is when human life actually begins: “The question you have to focus on, is when does meaningful, valuable human life begin? That’s with the union of the two sets of chromosome. You have a complete human being that begins developing.” (Park). This is disputed along with abortion, as people have different definitions on what is human life. These underlying issues, furthermore, fuel this ongoing controversy.
For a long time, this issue has been disputed and a lot of people like to voice their opinions about it. When, in my opinion, in reality, it is none of their business whether or not someone across the country aborts their unborn child. I do not understand how that would affect them and their lives. However, I do not believe abortion is right and I feel there needs to be restrictions on how long you can wait until you get an abortion, because sometimes the baby is grown and is an actual child. Therefore, it is not right to kill an unborn child. Nonetheless, I believe that all women should have the right to abortion, if that is what they choose to do. I am not justifying that it is morally right, by no means, but it is definitely a right that I believe all women should have. I do not think the government should be heavily involved with making laws against it, either. Overall, I think it is not anyone else’s decision about whether or not someone should have a child.
Works Cited
Dionsio, Lisa. "A Political, Public, and Moral Look at Abortion." NYU, 28 Feb. 2006. Web.
Florien, Daniel. "How to Stump Anti-Abortionists with One Question." Patheos. Patheos, 21 Jan.
2009. Web. 8 Nov. 2016.
Gallup’s Pulse of Democracy: Abortion; Jan. 26, 2006; The Gallup Organization; Feb. 15 2006.
http://poll.gallup.com/content/default.aspx?ci=1576.
"Medical Views: When Does Human Life Begin?" CNN. CNN, 7 Nov. 2011. Web. 2016 Nov. 7.
Suzanne Staggenborg. Abortion as a Social Problem. McGraw-Hill.1995. Page 50.
Tamney, Joseph B.; Johnson, Stephen D.; Burton, Ronald; The Abortion
Controversy: Conflicting Beliefs and Values in American Society; Journal for
the Scientific Study of Religion, Vol. 31, No. 1; Mar. 1992.
C&C / Social Issues Essay
Mrs. Williams
November 9, 2016
Abortion: Should Women Be Given This Right?
As Americans, we are lucky to be given many rights that most countries do not have. People from all walks of life should be given equal rights and their rights should not be limited, this includes rights dealing with choice. Dating back to the 1960s, abortion rights have been disputed, but never to the immensity that it is argued now. The government should not have the power to take away abortion rights given to women, but should instead make people more aware of other options or limit the types of abortion women can have.
The social issue of abortion is an issue that has not only been argued in politics, but has been argued throughout America, resulting in a morally divided nation. Some people feel like abortion should be abolished, others feel it should be limited and the rest believe that it should be able to be done freely: “Society has often associated the issue of abortion within the larger context of determining when life truly begins. And, at what point in a woman’s pregnancy does the fetus have the legal rights of a human being? This, in turn, leads to the question of the fetus’s rights versus the woman’s right to choose and determine issues that deal with her body”, (Dionisio) Many aspects of the argument comes up, including what is the definition of abortion. Different sides of the issue arise; dependent on these different definitions.
One of the roots of this argument is the Pro-life and Pro-choice movements: “The public’s division over abortion stems from conflicting views on personal freedom- a right to privacy and a right to religious or moral convictions surrounding the belief that life begins at conception”, (Tamney). The Pro-Life movement are people who are anti-abortionists, that believe abortion is wrong and the laws should be changed to comply with this opinion. Most want abortion abolished, except for cases of rape or incest, which is a very conservative view. Advocates of pro-life are usually completely against abortion, religious, and a part of the republican party. As an effect, the pro-life, which is mostly conservative, opens up the opposition's view of choice.
The Pro-Choice movement believes that women should have the right to abortion, if they choose to do so. They think that it is the woman's choice to decide what she should do with her body, and that the government should not have a say in that matter. “Pro-choice activists tend to be highly educated women who are pursuing careers. They have not rejected motherhood, but they see it as one of the number of roles, and they tend to have just one or two well-planned children. Pro-life activists, on the other hand, are somewhat less educated, less well-off women who to be housewives and have larger families. They are also more religious than pro-choice women”, (Staggenborg, pg50). These basic groupings have an effect on the decisions people make, their moral beliefs, and even their political beliefs.
Along with moral beliefs, the controversy over abortion also falls in the political issue category and has actually been a main issue in politics for a while. “While 53% of Americans identify themselves as pro-choice, only 40% of the population supports abortion for any reason during the first trimester of a pregnancy. Furthermore, 53% of Americans feel that abortion is morally wrong”, (Gallup). The majority of people pick a side when it comes to this issue, so the two parties have almost an even number of people. Republican voters are conservative, and more religious so they side with Pro-life, while the Democratic voters are less religious, so they side with Pro-choice. One of the main question people come across when addressing this debate is “Should the government be able to take away or limit this right?”. How people answer some of these questions and what they know about the subject affect their opinions and even though not all voters stick to these normalities, this debate, and how candidates say they will deal with this issue affects elections greatly.
There are a lot of things about the issue that people do not know. This changes their perception of the issue and forms their opinions. One of them is the fact that most people who view abortion as wrong say it is murder. However, if it is murder than if it was made illegal, the women who went through with abortion illegally would have to be sent to prison for life or given the death penalty. Another thing people do not know is when human life actually begins: “The question you have to focus on, is when does meaningful, valuable human life begin? That’s with the union of the two sets of chromosome. You have a complete human being that begins developing.” (Park). This is disputed along with abortion, as people have different definitions on what is human life. These underlying issues, furthermore, fuel this ongoing controversy.
For a long time, this issue has been disputed and a lot of people like to voice their opinions about it. When, in my opinion, in reality, it is none of their business whether or not someone across the country aborts their unborn child. I do not understand how that would affect them and their lives. However, I do not believe abortion is right and I feel there needs to be restrictions on how long you can wait until you get an abortion, because sometimes the baby is grown and is an actual child. Therefore, it is not right to kill an unborn child. Nonetheless, I believe that all women should have the right to abortion, if that is what they choose to do. I am not justifying that it is morally right, by no means, but it is definitely a right that I believe all women should have. I do not think the government should be heavily involved with making laws against it, either. Overall, I think it is not anyone else’s decision about whether or not someone should have a child.
Works Cited
Dionsio, Lisa. "A Political, Public, and Moral Look at Abortion." NYU, 28 Feb. 2006. Web.
Florien, Daniel. "How to Stump Anti-Abortionists with One Question." Patheos. Patheos, 21 Jan.
2009. Web. 8 Nov. 2016.
Gallup’s Pulse of Democracy: Abortion; Jan. 26, 2006; The Gallup Organization; Feb. 15 2006.
http://poll.gallup.com/content/default.aspx?ci=1576.
"Medical Views: When Does Human Life Begin?" CNN. CNN, 7 Nov. 2011. Web. 2016 Nov. 7.
Suzanne Staggenborg. Abortion as a Social Problem. McGraw-Hill.1995. Page 50.
Tamney, Joseph B.; Johnson, Stephen D.; Burton, Ronald; The Abortion
Controversy: Conflicting Beliefs and Values in American Society; Journal for
the Scientific Study of Religion, Vol. 31, No. 1; Mar. 1992.