Related Ideas

Review these ideas and then use the BACK key on your browser to go back to the page you were on.

What should a right to control one's fertility include? It would seem to include at least the use of some means to prevent having a child. But are there limits on which means are morally acceptable? If there are not, could a woman demand that her husband (or any given man) be sterilized because she wanted to guarantee that she did not have a child by him? If there are, how do we know that abortion is one of the acceptable means?

A woman's right to control her body, like all rights, is limited by the rights of other parties. Does the fetus count? If so, in what way do its rights connect with those of its mother?

Consider also that people can choose not to exercise rights. If a woman chooses to have sex knowing that she may become pregnant, is that a choice not to exercise her right to control her fertility? Why or why not?