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  • Essay / Essay on the Moral Permissibility of Abortion - 1662

    Consider Thomson's thought experiment: “You wake up in the hospital to find yourself in contact with a violinist suffering from a fatal kidney disease. In fact, you were kidnapped to ensure the violinist's life for the next nine months” (Little, 2005, 51-62). You have the choice between unplugging the cord that would kill the violinist or enduring the nine months. This example strongly illustrates that it is perfectly acceptable for the person to detach themselves because the violinist has an absolute right to life since he is alive and not at fault. The connected person owes no debt for remaining connected for nine months because it was not a voluntary choice and the violinist does not have the right to use another person's body (Little, 2005, 51-62 ). Thomson uses this example to argue that a mother has no obligation to carry a child in her womb for nine months if she does not take responsibility for it. No one is morally required to make great sacrifices for nine months to keep another person alive. On the other hand, the gestation period is something that a couple has planned and even if it is not the case, all sexually active people are aware of the imaginable outcomes. For this reason, the fetus becomes an obligation and the pregnancy becomes an obligation.