Narrow Definition of Person
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Philosopher Mary Ann Warren has argued for very high standards of personhood and hence her concept of a person is a narrow one. She argues that the traits most "central" to being a person include consciousness, reasoning, self-motivated activity, the capacity to communicate, and having a self-concept. Without arguing that any one of these traits is necessary for personhood, she points out that the embryo/fetus has none of them. It follows that neither the embryo nor the fetus is a person in any ordinary sense.

This type of a definition separates species membership (a biological fact) from personhood (a moral status). It also discounts potential in favor of the actual manifestation of the traits in question.

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