The Social Perspectives of Abortion in the Face of Modernization - Essay Example

The Social Perspectives of Abortion in the Face of Modernization of the of the Table of Contents Table of Contents 2 1.Introduction 3 1.1Analyzing Abortion against the Sociological Theories 3 1.2Problem Statement 6 2.Legal and Ethical Dilemma of Abortion – A Case Study 6 3.Conclusion and Recommendations 7 References 9 1. Introduction The social cause of abortion has been receiving the attention of analytical and discursive researchers in sociology from a very long time. In the context of progressive western societies, the dilemma is to decide on liberty or morality through respect of life. It is unfortunate that till date a long-drawn public debate on values and advancement of science has still not been resolved. It is more intriguing as the trauma of the endangered profiles is relentless who are in an absolute position of total exclusion from society, or often in a situation of status quo (Dillon, 2009). In western societies, legalization on abortion has not been found to be a foolproof solution, causing circumstantial segregations based on vested interests or dynamics of power. Violent protests and insurgencies by activitist groups have not been able to restore social harmony and peace. The proponents of abortion have always equated abortion to a social evil, but the roots of the issue is deeply ramified across all disciplines of sociological, political, moral, religious and most importantly, humanistic and psychological value and belief systems (Dillon, 2009). In this discourse, the topic of abortion will be critically analyzed in the light of sociological theories mainly, such as, the Social Conflict Theory, Symbolic Interactional Theory and Structural Functionalism. The best-fit approach and the emergent thoughts in the light of modernization will be deliberated using a secondary case-study analysis to enlighten on the way forward for such an eruptive social issue. 1.1 Analyzing Abortion against the Sociological Theories The debate on the issue of abortion has mostly to deal with the problems of inequality and behavioral choices on the part of the women who undergo the peril. Traditionally, there are two major observations to be noted in this case; firstly, no one likes it and many people seem to have clouted thoughts about it and secondly, despite its historic incidence in the society from time immemorial, abortion is like poverty and serious illness. Society abhors the fact but is not open about it too. There is always a continuing debate on coming to terms with the law on the other hand. With regard to the two emergent points of view, fetus and the female, the theoretical constructs need to be analyzed further in details (Nagan, 1972). Marxist theories are predominantly economic and deal with the external environment. Marxism community-manifesto supports a pro-abortion heritage. Conferring the social responsibility onto the mother, her opinion about keeping the baby or not has more to do with the human, social, economic and political factors rather the moral values of right to Life. After all, the fetus is unborn and is being judged by a person of some higher wisdom. Personhood of the fetus becomes irrelevant as moral values change similar to the material conditions of life (Mooney, Knox & Schacht, 2014). Coming from the proponents of a pro-capitalist economic system, such as Marx, one of the wings of social-conflict theories consider abortion to be needful as this would help in the economic development, with a special focus on women emancipation and their personal advancement. This is more applicable in the case of middle and higher income class women. Pregnancy, especially in the case of young college-goers would be costly and hinder their career growth. Conflict is born in view of the broader context of the society, wherein inequality creates a distinction between the groups on the lines of power and resources (Nagan, 1972; Mooney, Knox & Schacht, 2014). From the unborn fetus-side perspective, the issue of morality of the society could be put to question. On theories relating to structural-functionalism in relation to abortion, government must take necessary steps to ensure welfare of the society. Society is system of inter-connected parts that work cohesively to maintain balance, solidarity and social equilibrium, on the whole. The proponents of this theory, such as, Auguste Comte, Durkheim and Herbert Spencer, relate society to a human body, wherein the individual elements of social life work independently without minimal disruption, in the form of an organic model. Social disorganization creates social dysfunction leading to a state of anomie, people losing their norms and values. Therefore, functionalists favour the right of abortion as a necessary evil, like the right of women. They perceive it to be benefitting the society. The issue of abortion stands unsettled on the consideration of social laws to be quintessential to the morality of societies, as this helps to maintain good governance and maintain social harmony within societies. However, external pressures disintegrate moral bonds in societies. Hence, it is justifiable on the part of the society to undertake steps to conserve the morality and governance of state-run institutions (Mooney, Knox & Schacht, 2014). Narrowing down from the macro-level view of the society into gaining intrinsic insights of the ideas of abortion leads us to symbolic interaction. The theory believes that the interaction between a person and the other that is governed by symbolic interpretation of people’s reaction is important than the act itself. That is important because people attach more importance to an act through a label, interpretation or definition of their own. In case of a social problem, a practioner of symbolic interactionalism might either associate some negative meanings to a deviant or criminal behavior due to excess or any breach of law. The theory establishes the fact that an individual is expected to commit more crime if the individual interacts with people who commits a crime. Another possibility is to label individuals as deviants, by condemning them as criminals or sexually explicit, especially in cases related to abortion or unwanted pregnancy (LaRossa & Reitzes, 1993). On identifying the key theoretical approaches, it would be imperative to judge the issue of abortion in modern day domains of life and social norms. Whether legalities and laws are the only necessary measures or the emphasis is growing on to demonstrate a democratic form of self-expression and polity. The next section would analyze a particular case study to derive the key findings on the basis of this thought. 1.2 Problem Statement The intriguing query that permeates through the sociological constructs on abortion till date is to understand whether abortion is actually a social problem, with special relevance to the context of the forces of modernization. 2. Legal and Ethical Dilemma of Abortion – A Case Study Modernization pertains to a state of extreme self-expression and humanistic culture that has lent newly found dimensions to all major domains of life, including sexual norms, gender dimensions, familial values, working behaviors, personal choices etc. Modern day societies are enmeshed with extreme human autonomy and a demand for more liberal choices in all walks of life (Inglehart & Welzel, 2005). The below mentioned newspaper report on a teen in the state of Seattle in the USA is extremely relevant to the present thought of freedom of choice in the case of abortion. The mother of a high-school ballad student was extremely upset when an on-campus heath-centre performed the abortion of her daughter during school hours and the clinic kept the information confidential. Her daughter’s pregnancy came-to-light when the health centre performed a test on her as a standard procedure. She was made to sign the consent form which queerly had no mention of the pregnancy test in-plan to be executed. The daughter was given a free taxi pass to visit the clinic and ask questions on whether her family is informed about it. The Swedish medical board which sets-up health camps in the school, reserves the full rights of not-revealing the identity of the students and maintained over-secrecy in preserving student’s personal information. Although it is a norm in the state of Washington to impart full authority to the person to solicit her rights of going ahead with abortion or pregnancy, this sly act on the part of the school medical board puts the total rung of democracy, modernization and autonomy in personal choices. The mother lamented the entire incidents saying that they are having a feeling as if their rights have been stripped (KOMOnews, 2010). This case study is an ideal instance of the dilemma between personal freedom and circumstantial legalization on this debated topic of abortion, even in one of the advanced economies with a democratic structure. It is clearly pointing out to the divide between what exists in sociological theory and the sociological imagination based on personal and experience of a social problem. The advocates of modernization preach of an ideology of emancipation from all authoritarian controls and pursuing self-expression and freedom of choice. From a boarder perspective of the present day societies as a whole, there is a stark contrast of realities. 3. Conclusion and Recommendations To the abiders of abortion, it is the ethical murder of the unborn and yet –to be held human fetus and to the opponents of the theory; it is about the moral value proposition. Mother’s freedom of choice is also important in consideration to the fact whether she wants the baby to be born, whom probably she cannot rear well. Through the course of discussions on the theoretical background and the analysis of individual secondary-literature based case study, it is indicative that each of the theories has a different mode of interpretation. Both the social conflict theory and structural functionalism perceive abortion in the broader context of the society. The former perceives abortion in the view of capitalistic economic system for profit-making and wealth and the latter considers abortion as a social problem resulting in a sickness in the society. At a micro-level, symbolic interaction interprets the social interaction and acts of individuals. As a suggestive measure of tackling the contemporary problem, the way forward is to deal it in a case-based manner. The best approach may be to stick to the paradigms of symbolic interaction in a positive sense. That is because the whole scenario is extremely circumstantial, enabling people to make decisions as per their discretion and also be accountable for that too. In all this, the role of laws and legislations is only limited to offer a supporting governance structure. References Dillon, M. (2009). Introduction to Sociological Theory: Theorists, Concepts, and their Applicability to the Twenty-First Century. New York: John Wiley & Sons. KOMOnews. (2010). Mother furious after in-school clinic sets up teens abortion. Retrieved from http://www.komonews.com/news/local/88971742.html Inglehart, R., & Welzel, C. (2005). Modernization, Cultural Change and Democracy: The Human Development Sphere. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. LaRossa, R., & Reitzes, D. C. (1993). Symbolic Interactionism and Family Studies. Symbolic Interactionism and family studies. In Sourcebook of family theories and methods, 135-166. US: Springer. Mooney, L. Knox, D. & Schacht, C. (2014). Understanding social problems. Connecticut: Cengage Learning. Nagan, P. W. (1972). Social Perspectives: Abortion and Female Behavior. Val. U. L., 6(3), 286-314. Read More