The Standard Argument on abortion

 The Standard Argument

The standard argument is the following practical syllogism:

1. The killing of human beings is prohibited.
2. A fetus is a human being.
3. The killing of fetuses is prohibited.

Hence, abortion is not allowed since homicide is prohibited. It seems obvious to question the result of the practical syllogism since one is able to argue against both premises. First, there are possible situations where the first premise could be questioned by noting, for example that killing in self-defense is not prohibited. Second, the second premise could also be questioned since it is not at all clear whether fetuses are human beings in the sense of being persons, although they are of course…