One underlying ethical concern is, “What is a person?” How people answer this question shapes how they think about a developing human being.
exceptionally high moral status
, often described as having a right to life, an inherent dignity, or mattering for one’s own sake. Non-persons may have lesser rights or value, but lack the full moral value associated with persons. To be a person means having strong moral claims against others. For instance, persons have a claim to be treated fairly and a claim not to be interfered with. A healthy adult human being is often considered the clearest example of a person. Yet, most philosophers
, pointing out that no one disputes the fetus’s species, but many disagree about the fetus’s personhood.based on people’s access to intensive medical care. It also changes as medicine and technology advance.identify the presence of a “fetal heartbeat” as morally significant and use this as a basis for personhood. However, many living things have beating hearts, and they are not all considered persons.