What Is The Moral Status Of The Foetus? How Well Is This Reflected In English Law?

Firstly, I will explore the moral status of the foetus, and will then contrast this with the moral status of the foetus in English Law. For the first part of my essay, my argument will be as follows:

i) You need to have capacity for consciousness in order to have a right to life. (This is a necessary but perhaps not sufficient condition, which may or may not be inalienable.) ii) The developed foetus has capacity for consciousness iii) Therefore the developed foetus may have moral status and (perhaps among other rights) may have a right to life.

During this essay I shall contrast my views with those of Elizabeth Harman`s and Jeff McMahan`s, in order to further define and defend my position. Before I start, it is important to outline the definitions of certain concepts I shall be using. Firstly, when I refer to an `early foetus` in this essay, I mean a foetus that has not yet developed a capacity for consciousness. In contrast, a `developed foetus` will be a foetus that has the capacity for consciousness. Secondly, although it is difficult to define consciousness, I shall not focus on this task. Instead I shall simply use the Oxford Dictionary account of consciousness, which describes it as "the state of being aware of and responsive to one`s surroundings."

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