Application Exercise #1
Morality versus Analysis
June 27, 2007

1) Take a moment to reflect on all your moral positions about abortion.  Write these moral beliefs here.

My personal belief about abortion has changed over time.  Until my early twenties, I thought that abortion was an atrocity against children and that under no circumstances should a woman have an abortion.  At this point in my life, I believe that an abortion is very situational, and that while abortions should be avoided if possible, the choice is ultimately left up to the woman.

2) I want you to think of what social features contributes to why you have your moral beliefs.  You are trying to be self reflective.  What about my social position has led me to the conclusion about abortion?

Growing up in a strict Catholic household, I was taught that abortion was wrong in any situation.  I recall standing in picket lines in middle school along with my family.  I think that my first views on abortion were directly related to my socialization.

Part of the change may have come from the emphasis that our society puts on individualism and capitalism.  Our society is built on a foundation of strong individuals doing great things, and so our system is set up to praise those who follow this example, within reason.  I think the opportunity to be an individualist also contributed to my change.

I think my views changed as I began to think for myself, instead of blindly accepting what has been given to me.  I find that this happens often when young adults leave their family for the first time, usually when they go off to college.  I was no different.  I started coming up with my own views and began to lose my trust in Catholicism, and began chipping away at all the teachings I had been living with.  One of the first views to change was my stance on abortion.  I started became more accepting of other peoples and cultures, and in doing so, respected their ability to decide for themselves what was best.

Another way I changed from pro-life to pro-choice stance was through my changed viewpoint of women.  After I started thinking more about marriage as opposed to dating, I realized that I was going to have to change how I treated and respected women.  With dating, I found myself being dominant in the relationship, and I was very unhappy in the process.  I have since changed my attitude and treated relationships like a partnership instead of a one-sided group.  My newfound relationships brought about a change in my personal and perhaps subconscious thoughts about women and their ability to make informed choices.  Through this change, I have come to respect women in a whole new way than before.

Lastly, I believe that once I was removed from my original element, I was able to comprehend the multitude of other viewpoints.  Essentially, I had moved from a small society who all thought the same way to a much more diverse and widespread community with a much larger range of ideas.  Being forced to change to the community itself has contributed to my more recent stance on abortion.