Life Before Birth : The Moral and Legal Status of Embryos and Fetuses

Life Before Birth : The Moral and Legal Status of Embryos and Fetuses
Author :
Publisher : Oxford University Press, USA
Total Pages : 270
Release :
ISBN-10 : 9780199759682
ISBN-13 : 0199759685
Rating : 4/5 (82 Downloads)

Book Synopsis Life Before Birth : The Moral and Legal Status of Embryos and Fetuses by : Albany Bonnie Steinbock Associate Professor of Philosophy & Public Policy State University of New York

Download or read book Life Before Birth : The Moral and Legal Status of Embryos and Fetuses written by Albany Bonnie Steinbock Associate Professor of Philosophy & Public Policy State University of New York and published by Oxford University Press, USA. This book was released on 1992-07-23 with total page 270 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Hardly a day passes without newspaper coverage of some new development regarding prenatal life. The abortion debate continues to rage, but other examples abound: forced Caesareans; prosecutions of women for drug use during pregnancy; fetal protection policies; the use of fetal tissue for transplantation; embryo research; and the disposition of frozen embryos. All of these issues raise the question of the moral status of the unborn: are embryos and fetuses part of the pregnant woman or are they persons? Are they sources of tissue, research tools, or are they pre-born children? Different conceptions of the unborn prevail in different contexts, giving rise to the charge of inconsistency. For example, women have been criminally charged with abusing their fetuses by using drugs during pregnancy, even though abortion--which pro-lifers call the ultimate child abuse--is legal. The legalization of abortion itself was based in part on the unborn's never having been recognized in law as a full legal person. Yet fetuses have been considered as persons for the purposes of insurance coverage, wrongful death suits, and vehicular homicide. This book provides a framework for thinking clearly and coherently about the unborn. The first chapter elaborates the book's basic idea, that all and only beings who have interests have moral standing, and only beings who possess conscious awareness have interests. This thesis, which is called "the interest view," raises issues of considerable philosophical complexity, but is presented in language non-philosophers will be able to understand. Subsequent chapters apply the interest view, and explore the moral and legal aspects of a wide range of issues, including abortion, the legal status of the fetus outside abortion, maternal-fetal conflict, fetal research, and the use and disposition of extracorporeal embryos resulting from the new reproductive technologies. The philosophical discussion is enlivened by examples and actual cases which immediately catch, and sustain, the reader's interest. Written in a lively style, Life Before Birth: The Moral and Legal Status of Embryos and Fetuses is a timely and important work that enables us to resolve contradictions in our current thinking about the unborn, and to approach new issues in a clear and rational manner.


Life Before Birth : The Moral and Legal Status of Embryos and Fetuses Related Books

Life Before Birth : The Moral and Legal Status of Embryos and Fetuses
Language: en
Pages: 270
Authors: Albany Bonnie Steinbock Associate Professor of Philosophy & Public Policy State University of New York
Categories: Health & Fitness
Type: BOOK - Published: 1992-07-23 - Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Hardly a day passes without newspaper coverage of some new development regarding prenatal life. The abortion debate continues to rage, but other examples abound
Life Before Birth
Language: en
Pages: 85
Authors: Gary E. Parker
Categories: Juvenile Nonfiction
Type: BOOK - Published: 1987 - Publisher:

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

This book has been called the "most tastefully done and informative book on human life." Especially written for parents struggling to explain reproduction to th
Life Before Birth
Language: en
Pages: 0
Authors: Arthur Janov
Categories: Fetus
Type: BOOK - Published: 2011 - Publisher: Nti Upstream

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

The author believes the period of our lives that has the greatest impact on disease and personality formation is our gestation and birth. Recent studies provide
Origins
Language: en
Pages: 322
Authors: Annie Murphy Paul
Categories: Family & Relationships
Type: BOOK - Published: 2010-09-28 - Publisher: Simon and Schuster

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Paul presents an in-depth examination of how personalities are formed by biological, social, and emotional factors.
Human Life Before Birth
Language: en
Pages: 305
Authors: Frank Dye
Categories: Medical
Type: BOOK - Published: 2000-12-21 - Publisher: CRC Press

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

This textbook presents essential information about human embryology in an accessible form. In addition to covering the specifics of human embryology, the text a