I found these articles on abortion to be very interesting. Abortion is a very hotly debated topic on our country and one that I know we will have an interesting discussion on tomorrow in class. I found one line in Arcana’s article to be particularly interesting and something that I’ve never really heard anybody say before: “When the pregnancy is deliberate, or accepted, we say baby. When the pregnancy is an accident, or rejected, we say fetus or embryo, a mass of cells and tissue” (225). I am pro-choice and believe that every woman has the right to make a decision about whether or not to terminate a pregnancy, but thought that this was an interesting insight from someone who has worked in a clinic that provides abortions. I don’t think I have ever really thought of it this way.
I also agreed with the article in the Essential Feminist Reader when it says, “the topic of abortion has…largely lost its taboo” (358). I believe that this is a really important step for our society to take and one that will definitely take some time to accomplish. Getting an abortion is a private matter and for the hundreds of women to be brave enough, and face punishment by law, for admitting that they have had one I thought was very remarkable.
Brittany,
ReplyDeleteIn conversation with the quote stating how abortion has lost its taboo, I think it is noteworthy to widen this conversation and think about abortion on a more international level. We know many reasons why women have abortions, from unwanted pregnancies to parents’ inability to care and provide for the child etc., however in countries like China and India abortion are done for different reasons than what we are used to hearing. In China and India, both countries that put a strong emphasis of having a boy baby instead of a girl baby; therefore most of the abortions done in countries that have this gender bias, mothers often have or are often pressured by families (especially from the husband side) to have selective abortions when they know their child’s sex to be female. Culturally, countries like China and India have long lost that taboo of abortion, although politically that taboo still holds like in America. As a pro-choice supporter, I was curious of what you thought about this reason to justify abortion. It’s like the opposite of American where society is fostering the image of anti-abortion but China and India, culturally, support abortion.