Essay #2: The Ethics of Abortion
Word limit: 1000 words
Purpose:
Knowledge:
To deepen your understanding of an important ethical controversy at a time when it is at the forefront of the national conversation;
To help you to see how normative ethical theories can be used to justify claims about the moral permissibility or impermissibility of abortion;
To motivate you to develop your own position on this issue so that you can know what you think about it.
Skills:
to prepare you for the possibility of defending your view in conversation with someone who disagrees with you;
to help you improve your skill defining key terms;
to help you learn how to construct deductively valid arguments;
to enable you to think Christianly about an important moral issue.
Task:
Read section 5.7 (“Ethical Theories and Practical Moral Problems”) and then write another 1000-word maximum dialogue between you and a friend in which each of you takes a different side in answer to the question, “Is abortion ever morally permissible in cases other those involving rape, incest, or to save the mother’s life?” (Remember that your dialogue should focus on the moral question just posed rather than the legal question of whether there should be a law against abortion that would make it a punishable crime.)
Moreover, each of you should choose one of the normative ethical theories discussed in class (Kantian Ethics, Utilitarianism, or Virtue Ethics) to make your case, based on that theory, for your position. The theory you choose for each of you can be the same one (since each theory can be used as a basis for each position) or a different one.
As before, your arguments should be in a deductively valid form, and they should be as independently formulated and expressed as possible (though it will be fine for them to be based on the examples Lawhead provides in the text).
Finally, be sure to include in the conversation a discussion of how one should think about the abortion issue from the standpoint of the Christian faith.
Criteria for Success:
An “A” paper will include all of the following:
Clearly and simply written and well-organized with a clear unity of focus and clear and connected flow of thought (and no typos, spelling errors, or grammatical problems);
Clearly and adequately explained and argued (with key theories and terms defined accurately and clearly and arguments for positions clearly stated and clearly deductively valid—using different valid argument forms for each argument);
Independent thinking and expression evident (creative use of the resources provided in the text and lecture articulated in your own words).
The post Essay #2: The Ethics of Abortion
Word limit: 1000 words
Purpose:
Knowledge:
To d appeared first on blitzarchive.com.