My humble attempt at making up a discourse on abortion. This work is modelled after Ted Chiang's `Liking What You See: A Documentary.'
Father:
My wife faced a lot of complications during her pregnancy. According to the
doctors, she could be saved if we were allowed to abort the foetus.
Now I have lost the love of my life and my son has lost his mother.
Abortion should be allowed in extreme circumstances.
Mother:
My husband and I wanted to have a child. However I was unable to
conceive. Both of us are old now. Whenever we see a family with small
children, we get overwhelmed with feelings of sadness and depravity. Abortion should be
banned. Children bring happiness to the family.
Feminist:
A mother carries the child for nine months in her belly. A pregnancy
can have major effects on her life such as career break and
post-natal depression. The woman decides what to do with her body. Not
even the father of the child has a say in this matter.
Pragmatist: We should treat this subject realistically and not
judge on the basis of petty emotions and feelings. Both the parents
should consciously make a decision to raise a child. In the event of an
unintended pregnancy, abortion is a practical choice. No human
should be an accident.
Idealist: We read in the news about incidents of abortion, especially female foeticide. This weakens sex ratio and aggravates gender disparity in the society. A perfect society cannot condone abortion. We as a society should strive for equality in all matters of life.
Ethicist: Is abortion ethical? I would suggest we look at the issue on a case-by-case basis. For instance, consider rape. How can we allow pregnancy resulting from rape? It is ethical to abort such a pregnancy and thus save the child from a lifetime of ridicule and shame.
Euphemist: The question is whether I support premature termination of pregnancy or not. I think we should look at the big picture. Downsizing the population in this fashion, although might have some immediate adverse effects, will result in long-term benefits to the community.
Statistician:
Our land is yet to reach the replacement level of 2.1 on population
growth. So, statistically speaking, it is in the best interests of the
land to allow abortion. This will slow down our population grown and
thus reduce the strain on our resources.
Evolutionist: Do plants or animals commit abortion? No! Then why should human beings kill the (potentially useful) members of their own specifies. Homo sapiens are digging their own grave by supporting abortion (remember natural selection.) If we interfere with the nature, it will react violently.
Teenager: Yesterday I saw a video on abortion in my FB feed. Everybody in the comments supported abortion. It seems those who opposed were downvoted to oblivion. The hashtag #YayAbortion is trending on Twitter since Friday. Most of the Insta celebs have released videos supporting the cause.
Minister: Every child is a gift of the Supreme Being. Abortion is nothing but an act of disobedience. The scripture is very precise and clear in this matter. Obey the Supreme Being and you will be rewarded in abundance. A true believer cannot support this heinous act.
Pacifist: Abortion is nothing but cold-blooded murder. Violence of any sort cannot be justified. The sad side of abortion is that the parents themselves give consent to the killing of their child.
Fundamentalist: Our sect is in existential crisis. Our sect cannot afford to abort any child. On the other hand, I recommend every family to have at least three children to ensure our survival. In that case, in a few decades time, we will be the majority in this land.
Activist: We
have organized a public meeting in the town square tomorrow evening to
protest government's lack of enthusiasm to ensure immediate action on
the case. We invite everyone to join the protest and show your valuable
support to the cause. Remember, justice delayed is justice denied.
Politician: The opposition is trying to cash in on this case for political mileage. They have bought the media as well. There were 31,427 incidents of abortion in this land during their term. Those who failed to control abortion while in power now shamelessly question the current government. How long can they keep up with this shenanigan. The public cannot be taken for granted.
Conspiracy_Theorist: This is clearly a conspiracy to instil chaos in this land. To some extend, they have
succeeded in creating a division among the people with this issue. We
should instead direct our vision, time and energy on more pressing
issues such as rising unemployment and uniform civil code.
Veteran: Nothing is gonna change. We have witnessed similar events
in the past as well. The media wants to attract our attention and when
something new comes up, they are gonna let go of this issue. The current hullabaloo on abortion will soon give way to something new.
Boomer: Youngsters these days engage in premarital sex and adultery. During our days, we made sure never to get intimate with anyone from the
other sex outside of marriage. Marriage is a covenant between two individuals based on trust and love.
Millennial: Our society has historically put severe restrictions on exercising personal freedom, particularly for women. Times have changed. I don't want anyone else to tell me what to do with my life. The decision whether to abort my pregnancy or not is solely the responsibility of me and my husband. Live and let live. #YOLO
Stranger: Adopting a child is too easy in this land. That is why abortion is so rampant here. In order to combat abortion, we should make it hard for couples to adopt a child.
Revolutionist: Our land is now undergoing a social revolution. The rate of abortion has increased in the recent years. However most of them are done illegally or by quacks, which puts the mother's life at risk. Abortion should be legalized so that it can be done lawfully under the supervision of a medical doctor.
Liberal: Abortion should be incentivized. Abortion should be permitted except in extreme circumstances. Infringement on our freedom and rights should be condemned at all costs.
Moderate: I do not have a strong opinion on this matter. I thought about this issue for 24 hours straight but I could not come to a judgement. Both permitting abortion and prohibiting abortion have their pros and cons. We have to strike the right balance.
Conservative: Abortion should be penalized. Abortion should be prohibited except in extreme circumstances. Infringement on our culture and tradition should be condemned at all costs.
Reactionary: Our forefathers would not have cared to even discuss such an immoral act, let alone support abortion. The rate of abortion has increased in the recent years. This clearly indicates the deterioration of moral principles and ethics in our society. Abortion should be criminalize.
