Reply to A Kantian Argument Against Abortion

Abstract

This essay examines Gensler's general consistency principle (GR) and its application to the moral permissibility of abortion. The central claim is that applying GR to abortion leads to the conclusion that abortion is morally impermissible. The essay presents two objections to this claim, which challenge the validity of GR and the manner in which it is applied to abortion. The first objection (O1) states that it is impossible to accurately judge the potential of an object to become a rational being, while the second objection (O2) argues that applying GR to abortion involves the invalid use of a set of potential rational beings rather than a specific instance. Both objections reveal difficulties in applying GR to abortion, undermining the claim that using GR results in the moral impermissibility of abortion.

Author's Profile

Yunlong Xu
University of Chicago

Analytics

Added to PP
2023-05-01

Downloads
484 (#49,593)

6 months
159 (#22,011)

Historical graph of downloads since first upload
This graph includes both downloads from PhilArchive and clicks on external links on PhilPapers.
How can I increase my downloads?