Having a life versus being alive

Abstract

In an attempt to provide some clarification in the abortion issue it has recently been proposed that since 'brain death' is used to define the end of life, 'brain life' would be a logical demarcation for life's beginning. This paper argues in support of this position, not on empirical grounds, but because of what it reflects of what is valuable about the term 'life'. It is pointed out that 'life' is an ambiguous concept as it is used in English, obscuring the differences between being alive and having a life, a crucial distinction for bioethical questions. The implications of this distinction for the moral debate about abortion are discussed.

KIE: The author contends that the development of a functioning fetal brain provides the most reasonable demarcation of the beginning of human life for purposes of determining the moral status of the fetus. She bases her argument first on the connection between brain activity and the possibility of consciousness, and then on the connection between consciousness and the moral value of the lives of persons as distinct from biological life in general. She also applies this distinction to the public policy debate regarding abortion and related issues, such as experimentation on human embryos.