Infanticide, or the practice of killing a newborn baby, has been practiced by cultures throughout history and on every continent. It is still considered permissible in some parts of the world today, especially in areas of extreme poverty and overpopulation. Female children run a greater risk of infanticide, given cultural beliefs about gender. Consider the following excerpt (Sayah, 2011):
At a morgue in Pakistan's largest city, five linen pouches—each the size of a loaf of bread—line the shelf of a walk-in freezer. Wrapped inside each small sack is the corpse of an infant. The babies are victims of what one relief agency calls Pakistan's worst unfolding tragedy: the killing and dumping of newborns. Families view many of these children as illegitimate in a culture that condemns those born outside of marriage. Statistics show that roughly nine out of 10 are baby girls, which families may consider too costly to keep in a country where women frequently are not allowed to work. The head of Edhi Foundation, 83-year-old Abdul Sattar Edhi, blames Pakistan's crippling poverty and a government that, for decades, has failed to educate the masses, generate jobs and provide citizens with the most basic needs. "The distribution of resources by the government is wrong," Edhi said. "Many people don't pay taxes; there's no charity, and what you get from the government is all based on your wealth."
Considering the passage above, and write a paper of 3–4 pages that makes one of the following arguments:
1.Infanticide is universally morally wrong.
2.Infanticide is morally right within certain contexts.
Consider deontological ethics, teleological ethics, moral objectivism, and ethical relativism in your argument. Provide at least 3 valid reasons to support your argument. Also, be sure to include the following in your paper:
•Identify your argument—or thesis statement—within the introduction of your paper.
•Include definitions of cultural relativism, ethical relativism, moral objectivism, deontological ethics, and teleological ethics.
•Consider infanticide from the perspective of Immanuel Kant’s universal categorical imperative. Could you argue that infanticide can occur universally within situations like extreme poverty and overpopulation? Why or why not?
•Consider infanticide from the perspective of teleological ethics. Does infanticide within the context of extreme poverty promote the greater good? Please explain.
•The article states that, “Families view many of these children as illegitimate in a culture that condemns those born outside of marriage” (Sayah, 2011). Does this belief justify infanticide? Be sure to include how this belief relates to cultural relativism and moral objectivism.
•Use proper grammar, spelling and punctuation.
•You may find that you change your mind on the issue as you are writing your paper. That is fine, but be sure to present your ultimate decision at the beginning of the paper, and stick to it consistently throughout. This may require that you go back and change the first few paragraphs that contain your thesis statement.
•Your argument should be clear, concise, and supported with logically valid claims.
As many details as possible to fill about 3 pages would be nice.