Deck 8: Reproductive Issues

Question 1

The position that the decision to abort is one of personal liberty and thus should be legal is known as the ____________________ position.

A) pro-life
B) sanctity of life
C) viability
D) pro-choice

Answer 1

pro-choice

Question 2

____________________ is a procedure in which eggs are removed from a woman and fertilized in a laboratory dish.

A) In-vitro fertilization
B) Surrogacy
C) In-vivo fertilization
D) Intrauterine insemination

Answer 2

In-vitro fertilization

Question 3

The most common ethical problems associated with the process of in vitro fertilization comes from what is to be done with the unneeded ____________________.

A) eggs
B) conceptus
C) embryos
D) sperm

Answer 3

embryos

Question 4

The Thompson analogy titled "The Carpet-Seed Children Analogy" attempts to deal with the issue of failed ____________________.

A) fertilization
B) intercourse
C) conception
D) contraception

Question 5

Laws that single out the medical practices of doctors who provide abortions and impose on them requirements that are different and more burdensome than those imposed on other medical practices are called ________________ laws.

A) Pro-life
B) Pro-choice
C) Trap
D) Stark

Question 6

Match each item to the definition below.

-The belief that abortion should be legal and the individual decision a matter of personal liberty

A) Embryo
B) Fetus
C) Quickening
D) Pro-life
E) Pro-choice
F) Viability
G) In vitro fertilization
H) Surrogacy

Question 7

Match each item to the definition below.

-The belief that abortion should be illegal as a matter of respect for the sanctity of human life

A) Embryo
B) Fetus
C) Quickening
D) Pro-life
E) Pro-choice
F) Viability
G) In vitro fertilization
H) Surrogacy

Question 8

Match each item to the definition below.

-The period during pregnancy at which a woman can feel movement of the fetus

A) Embryo
B) Fetus
C) Quickening
D) Pro-life
E) Pro-choice
F) Viability
G) In vitro fertilization
H) Surrogacy

Question 9

Match each item to the definition below.

-The term given the entity at about 8 weeks' gestation when the first neural cells start differentiating; This term will then continue to be used until birth

A) Embryo
B) Fetus
C) Quickening
D) Pro-life
E) Pro-choice
F) Viability
G) In vitro fertilization
H) Surrogacy

Question 10

Match each item to the definition below.

-The stage at which the fetus can live independent of the mother's body

A) Embryo
B) Fetus
C) Quickening
D) Pro-life
E) Pro-choice
F) Viability
G) In vitro fertilization
H) Surrogacy

Question 11

Match each item to the definition below.

-The birth of Louise Brown is the first example of this technological advance

A) Embryo
B) Fetus
C) Quickening
D) Pro-life
E) Pro-choice
F) Viability
G) In vitro fertilization
H) Surrogacy

Question 12

Match each item to the definition below.

-The arrangement where one woman carries a baby to term and then transfers the obligation for raising the child to another

A) Embryo
B) Fetus
C) Quickening
D) Pro-life
E) Pro-choice
F) Viability
G) In vitro fertilization
H) Surrogacy

Question 13

It is interesting and perhaps puzzling to note that in the matter of the late term abortion controversy, the proponents on both sides do not even use the same terms to describe the event. Pro-choice advocates favor the term intact dilation and evacuation, while pro-life advocates use the term partial birth abortion. Explain why you think that each side is attempting to frame the argument using their terms.

Question 14

Review the Roe v. Wade decision and draw a time line showing the shifting emphasis of decision making in regard to whose rights have to be considered in the abortion decision (the father's, the mother's, the mother's and physician's, the state's).

Question 15

Explain how issues of civil disobedience are involved in the politics of the abortion issue.

Question 16

Over the three decades following the Roe v. Wade decision, the nation has been involved in a struggle over the issues involved. Neither side has been able to prevail, but small gains have been made at the margins of the issue. Identify and explain how the following have been part of the wedge issue debates regarding the abortion issue.a. Hyde Amendmentb. Partial birth abortionc. RU-486

Question 17

In an essay explain and provide justifications for the position of the pro-life movement.

Question 18

In an essay explain and provide justification for the position of the pro-choice movement.

Question 19

The pro-life position has often been criticized for not being truly pro-life but only pro-birth. What is the basis of this criticism and is it justified?

Question 20

At some level the abortion argument is based on an individual's assessment regarding whether personal autonomy (pro-choice) or the sanctity of human life (pro-life) is the higher value. In an essay, defend your personal view on the matter.

Question 21

List the elements of the doctrine of double effect and state when it is used.

Question 22

Many of us have been moved by stories of a mother or sister acting as a surrogate so that a wanted child can be born to a family. The practice becomes more controversial once it is removed from a gift provided within a family and placed in a business arrangement where someone is paid for services. Provide both a defense and refutation argument for surrogacy for hire.

Question 23

Part of the argument for and against embryonic stem cell research is that it creates a use for the unwanted human embryos that have been frozen and stored as a result of in vitro fertilization efforts. If these extra unneeded embryos will at some point be thawed and destroyed anyway, why not make them available for biological research? Defend or refute the idea that one should make use of these human embryos in this way.

Question 24

In that during the process of doing in vitro fertilization, human embryos are rated for quality, discarded if they contain defects, and frozen for later use or disposal, none of which we would allow during the other stages of human existence, does this mean that in vitro fertilization is ethically wrong? Provide an ethical defense that you feel overcomes the argument against in vitro fertilization based on the sanctity of human life.

Question 25

Provide both pro and con arguments for the surrogacy issue based on utilitarian reasoning.

Question 26

The Hyde Amendment, which disallowed any federal money from being spent for abortions, identified abortion as a negative right. Explain the difference between a positive right and a negative right.

Question 27

Explain the difficulties with arguments based on self-defense.

Question 28

Explain why the personhood argument would not provide protection for the fetus.

Question 29

Review the stages of human embryonic development and provide an ethically viable argument as to when a "right to life" should be granted by society.

Question 30

Prior to 2016, in the People's Republic of China there was an enforced law that attempted to limit children to one per family. Which argument in the chapter is most in keeping with that Chinese law? Explain your choice.