Untangling Popular Pro-Choice Arguments: Critical Thinking about Abortion - Paperback

by Hendrik Van Der Breggen (Author)

ENDORSEMENTS

"Discussions on abortion often degenerate quickly into personal attacks and our culture is quick to supply us with a set of labels to encourage those attacks: anti-choice, pro-abortion, and others. Is it possible to discuss an issue this contentious in a way that critiques viewpoints while showing kindness and respect to those who hold them? Hendrik van der Breggen has shown the way in this book. Not only is it clear and readable, it is fair to all positions. Most importantly, he avoids straw man fallacies which are so common in writings on divisive and contentious issues. If you are looking for a book both to help you understand both sides in the ongoing abortion disputes of our culture and also to develop thoughtful responses for your own discussions with others, this will be an important book for you."

-Paul Chamberlain, PhD, Professor of Ethics and Leadership, Director of the Institute for Christian Apologetics, Trinity Western University, author of Talking About Good And Bad Without Getting Ugly: A Guide To Moral Persuasion (InterVarsity Press)

"What a refreshing read! Dr. van der Breggen writes in a way that is easy to understand even for those who have never studied philosophy. The abortion debate is so tangled up in politics and slogans that reason gets left out of the discussion. This book approaches the overused and underthought arguments from a place of logic, allowing the reader to look again at what it means to be a member of the human race. I also found it refreshing that he is able to remove both politics and religion from the discussion around abortion. I highly recommend this book to anyone who thinks they already understand the abortion arguments circling through social media."

-Roger Gingerich, MD, Family Physician, former Chairman of the Board, Providence University College and Seminary, former Executive Director of Christian Medical and Dental Association of Canada

"This is the clearest and most thorough summary of standard (plus many non-standard but important) pro-choice arguments and of sound pro-life replies to them that I have read. Van der Breggen is fair, patient, and non-abrasive to the pro-choice arguments he refutes. His counter-arguments are cogent, succinct, and intelligible. This will be a must-read for anyone seriously interested in the topic, and will make a great text for applied ethics, bioethics, or introductory ethics classes."

-Patrick Lee, PhD, Professor of Philosophy, Director of the Center for Bioethics, Franciscan University of Steubenville

"I thoroughly enjoyed Untangling Popular Pro-Choice Arguments. Hendrik van der Breggen addresses the most common challenges to the pro-life position and offers brief and well-researched responses. ... Whether you are new to this issue, or have been studying it for years like me, you will benefit greatly from reading and studying Dr. van der Breggen's book."

-Sean McDowell, PhD, Associate Professor of Apologetics, Biola University

"Professor van der Breggen makes a valuable contribution to the abortion debate in systematically identifying the arguments used by pro-choice advocates to justify and promote women's access to abortion and seeking to refute each of them. People on both sides of the debate, whether pro-life or pro-choice, will agree with some of van der Breggen's arguments and disagree with others, but we will all be forced to analyse more precisely, whether our stance is ethical and justified. In short, whatever our position on abortion this book merits reading."

-Margaret Somerville, AM, FRSC, DCL, Professor of Bioethics, Affiliate of the Institute for Ethics and Society, University of Notre Dame Australia

About the author

HENDRIK VAN DER BREGGEN, PhD (University of Waterloo), is a retired philosophy professor (formerly at Providence University College, Manitoba, Canada).