128: Abortion

Questions about the Video File:

1. What were her first thoughts when she found out she was pregnant?
2. What questions popped up in her mind to make a decision regarding her pregnancy?
3. What are her family backgrounds?
4. How did her friend support her?
5. What is the gap regarding the issue of abortion?

General Questions:

1. Who must have the right to decide about the life of a baby before it is born? Why?
2. Is abortion legal or illegal in your country?
3. What do various religions say about abortion?
4. What does your society think about abortion?
5. Which one is worse, to have an abortion or to give birth to a baby you don't want and you don't love?
6. If a woman wants to have an abortion, what rights does/should the father have? Why?
7. Do you know anyone who has had an abortion? How would you/she describe the experience?
8. Are there any post-trauma experiences that need to be taken care of after an abortion? Are they usually dealt with in your society?
9. What are some of the criteria a woman should take into account when deciding about having an abortion?

Related Quotes:

• “No woman can call herself free who does not control her own body.” Margaret Sanger
• “It is a poverty to decide that a child must die so that you may live as you wish.” Mother Teresa
• “I cannot understand anti-abortion arguments that centre on the sanctity of life. As a species we've fairly comprehensively demonstrated that we don't believe in the sanctity of life. The shrugging acceptance of war, famine, epidemic, pain and life-long poverty shows us that, whatever we tell ourselves, we've made only the most feeble of efforts to really treat human life as sacred.” Caitlin Moran, How to Be a Woman

Related Words and Phrases:

pregnant (adj) when a woman is pregnant, she has a growing baby inside her

• There is a course for pregnant mothers to teach them about newborn babies.

pregnancy (n) the state of being pregnant.

• Pregnancy can be challenging for some women if they haven’t thought about it before.

abort (v) to end a pregnancy for any reasons on purpose

• The biggest challenge in her life was when she had to decide to abort.

abortion (n)  the act of ending a pregnancy on purpose.

• Abortion has always been a controversial issue all around the world.

criteria (n/pl) criterion (singular) a standard that helps you to make a decision

• There are several criteria for choosing the best university for higher education.

Pro-life (adj)  if you are pro-life you are against abortion.

Pro-choice (adj) if you are prochoice you believe that women have the right to decide to have an abortion or not

• The rally ended up in a fight between pro-life religious women and pro-choice women who wanted the law to support their right to abortion.

The less fortunate: people who are poor

• They have no regard for the less fortunate and simply ignore them.

polarizing (adj) having totally opposing and contrasting views and beliefs

• Regarding the two extremes about abortion it is only logical to consider it a polarizing issue which most politician try to avoid.

divisive (adj) causing lots of disagreement and controversy

• Abortion is one of the most divisive issues in most communities.

liberalize (v) to make a law less strict

• Many politicians have tried to liberalize abortion bans.

Related Collocations

Ban/outlaw/restrict abortion (v) to announce abortion illegal

• Abortion was banned in most states.

Allow/legalize/support abortion (v) to approve of abortion legally

• Abortion is allowed only in case of life threat.

To be hotly debated: to be the topic of a discussion which is a lot of disagreement around that

• Having the right to medical insurance for smokers is hotly debated in some communities.