Situation ethics

• What tradition did this grow out of?

  Abortion an 'evil act'
• What did Fletcher say about rules?

  'push our principles aside and do the right thing'
• What are the views of the Church of England?

  abortion is the 'lesser of two evils'

  e/g if a woman was raped
• How should we act?

  in the best interest of those affected
• What is it generally in our interest to do?

  create families
• What should abortion not be used as?

  a method of birth control
• Example 1

  Female doctor aborted 3000 Jewish women as if they were to be taken to a concentration camp they would be killed straight away

  Saved 3000 and prevented the murder of 6000
• Example 2

  1962 - a girl with a mental illness raped by a patient in the mental hospital and her dad demanded an abortion

  They refused on the basis that they only gave abortions if the mother's life was at risk

  Fletcher disagreed with this