Josh Landon

Eng 113, IN1

Research Paper

In Ernest Hemingways Hills like White Elephants, the question of the morality of
abortion is pondered by a couple considering it. The short story offers an excellent base to
explore the morality of this common and sometimes-popular practice. While the man in the
relationship is sure that he wants his friend to have an abortion, the girl is unsure and brings up
several questions about the operation, which we will discuss later on (Moonstar, November 13,
2009).
The Two Views
Abortion is defined differently, depending on whether you consider it to be an ethical
practice or not. Wikipedia defines it as the termination of a pregnancy by the removal or
expulsion from the uterus of a fetus or embryo, resulting in or caused by its death (Wikipedia,
November 9, 2009). There are different ways or methods of aborting. The broadest categories
of intentional abortion, which is what will be referred to from here on as simply abortion, are
medical abortions and surgical abortions. There are also certain things that the mother can
consume, that will result in the death of her child (Wikipedia, November 9, 2009).
There are many views on abortion as it relates to morality. All of the different views can
be separated into two categories; the belief that abortion is always wrong and the belief that
abortion is at least sometimes right. Many believe that abortion is wrong, but that the woman
must be allowed to make the choice for herself. They would go into the pro-abortion camp,
because, regardless of why it is so, they have declared that the freedom of the mother is a greater
law than the right of the baby. They have implied that abortion is right, if the mother desires it.
Thus they believe that abortion is at least sometimes right. Others declare that abortion is wrong,
except in cases of rape or to save the life of the mother. They would also go into the pro-
abortion category, because they have declared that abortion is sometimes right.
Some would protest to clumping all the people who believe that abortion is only
sometimes right together with all the people who believe that abortion is almost always
acceptable. This is not a valid objection, though, because the question is whether abortion is
right, not whether it is always right. Very few people believe that abortion is always right. This
is probably because there is a kind of desire to preserve the human race. The question is if
abortion is sometimes right. Thus, we are not over generalizing by using such a categorization.
By examining the practice of abortion from a scientific, philosophical, and psychological
perspective, we will find that abortion is morally wrong and that, because it is morally wrong, it
should be illegal.

Abortion is Wrong, because it is Wrong to kill an innocent Person
Before it can be said that something is wrong, we must establish that there is, in fact, such
a thing as right and wrong. We certainly act as if we are under a kind of moral law. It seems to
differ a little from person to person, but everyone, even the cruelest and most selfish people, act
as if they have an obligation to do certain things and to not do others. Many would conclude that
this moral law is actually created by society and may have different demands for different
people. In essence, they would propose that morality is relative and not objective. There is a
serious problem with this idea, though. If we make our own moral laws, then we would be
greater than them. The problem is that we are obviously not greater than this moral law. We
must submit to it. We are subject to it. If it were subject to us, then we wouldnt feel any need
to obey it. There would be no need to pay attention to it at all. In fact, there would be no reason
to make it up in the first place. Why on earth would someone come up with a rule just so they
can obey it, even though they dont have to? Obviously, the moral law that we are under is
objective and absolute. It is commonly referred to as Natural Law.
In Hills like White Elephants, it is presupposed that there is a natural law. The problem
is that the man and the girl have different views about it. While the man sees nothing wrong
with abortion, the girl seems less sure, almost as if shes trying to convince herself that it is the
right thing to do, when she knows that it is not. However, they both believe that their view is
absolutely right. It can, therefore, be said that they both have some kind of belief in Natural Law
(Moonstar, November 13, 2009).
It would, at this point, be beneficial to define the word life. When we refer to human
life, we usually imply that there is something important or at least valuable about it. We
condemn other people for murdering. Sometimes, we even hesitate to send people into battle to
fight for things that are important to us, because we fear that people may be killed. We feel great
sorrow and anguish when someone we know dies. Almost everyone puts value on the life of at
least some people. It seems as though there is something wrong with taking another life unless it
is absolutely necessary. We take these convictions so seriously that we put people in prison for
long periods of time for not respecting human life the way that we do. Sometimes, well even
kill a person ourselves, if they have killed an innocent person. So, keeping people alive, at least
for as long as expectable, is important to most Americans (Abortionfacts, November 11, 2009).
These beings that we wish to preserve and respect, all have certain things in common.
We all seem to have this ability to reason or think and we all have emotions. Probably the most
important thing we have in common is our ability to make choices. That is, we appear to have a
will. There are many views about the nature of a human. Despite the differing foundational
world views, most Americans seem to acknowledge that a person is a being with mind will and
emotions, regardless of the different beliefs about the nature of each of those qualities
(Abortionfacts, November 11, 2009).
When aborting, the reasoning is often that the child is not really a person or that he/she
doesnt constitute life until after he/she is born. In the story, the man seems to have adopted
this mentality. It is possible that he knows that the child is a human and simply wishes not to
think about it that way, but it seems likely that he has a firm belief in the in-humanity of the
baby. The girl realizes that there is something important about the thing that she is considering
killing. If it were not so, she wouldnt be so concerned about her life and relationship changing
after the operation. She repeatedly says things like what will we do afterwards? and will it be
nice again?. It seems as if she is struggling to see her baby as a non-human (Moonstar,
November 13, 2009).
The belief that unborn children do not constitute life is flawed, because it supposes that
there is some monumental change in the existence of the child that happens during birth. Of
course, a child does change a lot as he/she is born. The problem is that children change a lot at
other times as well. In fact, a child goes through a lot more change while inside the womb, than
it does while coming out. There is no reason to think that a new-born child, outside the womb,
has mind, will, and emotions, but that it didnt, just seconds before, while it was inside the
womb. There is no evidence that children have a life change at birth (Bearspace.Bailor,
November 13, 2009).
It may be farther argued, that if it is possible to dub a being to be life at any time that
we wish, simply because the being is going through dramatic biological change, then we ought to
be able to do it at times other than birth. For example, one might ask why we shouldnt say that
a being constitutes life, only after its third birthday. This would be beneficial to the health of the
mother, because then she could kill her two year-old when it gets extremely annoying, or when it
doesnt behave, and would, thus, decrease stress. One might say that if we can decide when
something becomes life, perhaps we can choose when it ceases to be life as well. That way,
we could kill older people when they become too much of a burden.
Of course, no one would agree that it is right to kill adults, regardless of how much their
bodies have changed. They are still people. They posses mind, will, and emotions. They are
still worthy of our respect. It is inconsistent to argue that a person is not really life until they
have exited the womb. It seems as though, either a person is life from conception, or they
never constitute life.
Since it can be agreed that there is such a thing as right and wrong and unborn children
constitute life, then, because unnecessary killing of life is wrong, aborting is wrong.

Abortion is Harmful to the Mother
Sometimes, the simple fact that something is morally wrong is not enough to motivate a
person to not do it. This is sometimes the case with mothers considering abortion. Although
they may not feel like it is the right thing to do, they may still choose to have an abortion because
they think it will benefit them in the end.
In Hills like white elephants, we get a glimpse of the torture that some mothers go
through after having an abortion. The girl looks across the valley and sees a barren, dusty side
and a beautiful, fertile side. This is symbolic of the results of having an abortion. She fears that
she will feel bad and lonely if she gets an abortion. Regardless of whether she wants to raise her
child or not, she fears the consequences of killing her child even more (Moonstar, November 13,
2009).
Many women have an abortion, thinking that there will be no serious consequences and
then feel very bad about it afterwards. One women said, a week after aborting her child, I am
still going through absolute hell ... I cry at least 10 times a day. If I see a baby on the street with
its mom or dad, I cry. If I see a baby on TV or in a book, I cry. If I hear about kids or anything to
do with pregnancy or abortion, I break into tears. I've thought about suicide the pain I am
feeling I know will only get worse. And I can only think of myself as one thing; a Murderer!
(Gargaro, November 11, 2009)
Such testimonies are common and numerous. One woman said that not having anyone to
talk with that would understand made it even worse. I still have that emptiness in my heart and
in my eyes she said. Another woman admitted that abortion is not fun. It is sinful, painful,
and mind tormenting. (Gargaro, November 11, 2009)
In addition to the emotional and psychological effects of having an abortion, there are
also biological consequences. Aborting may decrease the chances of being able to have another
baby, in the future. One of the problems is that Abortion results in cervical damage, which
results in permanent weakening of the cervix, which, in turn, is unable to carry the weight of a
later pregnancy (Gargaro, November 11, 2009).
Even if it was thought that abortion was ethically justifiable, the consequences of having
an abortion can be severe. Generally, women who have had abortions are more likely to commit
suicide and use illegal drugs than women who havent. While the fact that aborting causes
suffering for the mother doesnt necessarily make it wrong, it is an important factor in the debate,
and should not be overlooked (Cromie, 1996).
In the story, the man had a very hard task. He had to convince the girl, not only that
abortion was morally right, but that having an abortion wouldnt cause any pain or suffering for
her. Convincing her that it would be ethical is one thing. Trying to assure her that she was
actually safe is another. It appears as though she never really gets completely sold out to the
idea. Eventually, she simply says that she doesnt care about her safety or comfort, but only
about the preference of the man (Moonstar, November 13, 2009).

Abortion should be Illegal
While it is assumed in the story that abortion is legal, the legality of abortion is an
important part of the issue. Some may agree that, while abortion is wrong, it shouldnt be illegal.
They object that the simple fact that something is wrong is not a reason to make it illegal. In
essence, the question is whether we should legislate morality. It seems cruel and inconsiderate to
try to make every one do certain things, just because some people think it is right or wrong.
Perhaps we should ask what we would legislate, if we didnt legislate morality. When
one comes to think of it, the answer becomes obvious. If we didnt make laws based on
morality, we wouldnt have any laws. We make traffic laws because the government is trying to
keep motorist safe. The government does this, because it believes that it has a right to keep
people traveling on public roads safe. It is against the law to rape. The government made this
law, because it believes that rape is wrong, and people should be punished for it. It further
believes that it is right for the government to protect people from being raped. Obviously, if we
dont base our laws on morality, we will either have no laws at all, or very destructive and
harmful laws.
Even atheist and secularist believe that there should be laws. Indeed, they even believe
that morality should be legislated . Every one wants freedom and liberty. The only way to have
that is to punish evil and destructive actions. Put simply, we must legislate morality. That
doesnt mean that we all agree on what constitutes a moral action and what constitutes an evil
one. However, there is no denying that we must legislate morality.
Since we have seen that abortion is always wrong, it would follow that it should be
illegal. Everyone agrees that murder should be against the law. If unborn babies are life, as
we have shown them to be, then killing them is murder. Therefore, killing unborn babies should
be illegal. Abortion is wrong and the government should protect the rights of the babies. A
mother does not have a moral right to choose whether she wants to kill her children or not. An
unborn child does have a moral right to live.

A Righteous Kill
If unborn babies werent life, then there would be nothing wrong with aborting them.
It might not be a particularly wise thing to do, considering all the emotional pain that mothers
often experience after having an abortion, as the girl in the story tried to forget, but it would at
least be ethically justifiable. The fact of the matter, though, is that unborn children do constitute
life. It is, therefore, wrong to kill them. Arguing that a mother has a right to choose is like
saying that a murderer has a right to choose. Obviously, we do not have a right to murder and,
thus do not have a right to abort our unborn children.
The girl in the story seemed to know that abortion was wrong and that it would hurt her.
Unfortunately, she seemed to care more about pleasing her selfish boyfriend than about the life
of her child, or what was best for her. Abortion is often thought of as the righteous kill. It is
not a righteous kill. Like the woman in Hills like White Elephants, we must choose between
the fertile land of life and the barren land of death. (Moonstar, November 13, 2009).
References
Abortion, Wikipedia.org, November 9, 2009. November 11, 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abortion>
Abortion I, Bearspace.Bailor.edu, October 12, 2009. November 13, 2009
<http://bearspace.baylor.edu/Alexander_Pruss/www/1308/abort1.html>
Abortion is every Womens Right, Socialistworker.com, April 23, 2004. November 12, 2009
<http://socialistworker.org/2004-1/496/496_06_Abortion.shtml>
Abortion Stories, Gargaro.com, August 17, 2009. November 11, 2009
<http://www.gargaro.com/abortion/stories.html>
Abortion-the Right to Choose, Studyworld.com, September 25, 2009. November 11, 2009
<http://www.studyworld.com/moral_issues/abortion/abortion_the_right_to_choose.htm>
Hills like White Elephants, moonstar.com, September 21, 2008 . November 13, 2009
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Life or Choice, Pro Choice, Abortionfacts.com, November 11, 2009. November 12, 2009
<http://www.abortionfacts.com/life_or_choice/pro_choice.asp>
Medical Abortion Procedures, Americanpregnancy.org November 10, 2009
<http://www.americanpregnancy.org/unplannedpregnancy/medicalabortions.html>
No sure Link between Abortion and Breast Cancer, news.harverd.edu, gazette 1996, 10.24,
October 15, 2008. November 12, 2009 < http://www.news.harvard.edu
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Pro-Choice, Wickipedia.org, November 10, 2009. November 11, 2009
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pro-choice>