The 2022-2023 Regional NHSEB Regional Case Set went live Friday afternoon. Two cases that immediately caught my attention were #1, on the implications of Artificial Intelligences becoming conscious (Philosophy of Mind, anyone?), and #13, on a couple’s disagreement over how much risk to their Unborn Developing Human is too much.
In a nutshell, the mother is OK possibly catching COVID at work and lifting heavy stuff at home, whereas the father wants her to telework when a coworker has tested positive and has volunteered to cover the strenuous household chores. The question becomes, just how much weight should the father’s input carry?
It’s not perfect. For one, the title, “Our Baby, My Body” is awfully close to “My Body, My Choice,” steering analysis toward a predetermined conclusion. “Dismissing a Father’s Love” would have been just as bad in the other direction. A more neutral (but boring) alternative: “Properly Balancing Parental Autonomy During Pregnancy.”
However, I’m just glad it’s included at all, and optimistic that Ethics Bowl coaches, teams and judges won’t be inappropriately swayed by the title’s (surely unintentional) framing. Readers of the blog know that abortion is one of my favorite ethical issues, and that I’ve been encouraging case committees to include abortion cases for some time. So THANK YOU NHSEB Case Committee. #13 is a gentle, classy way to broach abortion ethics, and to test the waters for more direct discussions in the future.
In fact, let’s test the waters right here. Download the official set from NHSEB.unc.edu (click the Cases link at the top). But here’s #13 in full, all credit to the original authors. If you’re brave enough to share your initial thoughts, that’s what that Leave a Reply section is for (appears when you open articles individually).
2022-2023 NHSEB Regional Case #13. “Our Baby, My Body” [or “Properly Balancing Parental Autonomy During Pregnancy”]
Tom and Melinda are about to have a baby together. They are both committed to raising the child together as a family, and they have made many of the decisions about how they’re going to raise the child as a team. Recently, though, Melinda has been engaging in activities that Tom thinks are unnecessarily risky for the health of their future child. She has continued going into work instead of working from home when her employees have reported they are sick with COVID-19. Tom has mentioned that the most recent information shows that there are risks for the pregnancy if Melinda catches COVID-19, including a pre-term birth or stillbirth. She also continues to exert herself physically more than Tom thinks is necessary for her or healthy for the baby.
Tom believes that, since he is an equal partner in raising the child, he should have an equal say in how Melinda acts when it comes to the health of the child. He does not think it is unfair of him to tell Melinda that she needs to work from home when her co-workers are sick, or to insist that she stop exerting herself around the house and let him do the chores. After all, it is his child too, and just like all of the other decisions that they’ve made about how they are going to raise it, he thinks that the decisions Melinda makes that would affect the child should be equally open for discussion (and even potential veto).
Melinda, on the other hand, believes that Tom is being overbearing and controlling. She believes that, until the baby is born, it is her body, and she is free to do what she wants. As long as she is carrying their child, she says, her wants and desires will always outweigh Tom’s because he is not the one that has to live with the pregnancy. Tom is free to offer his input, and she will always take it into consideration out of respect for him as a partner, but the final decision is hers. She argues that Tom is being unfair and has no right to be upset when she acts contrary to his desires.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. Are Tom and Melinda truly equal partners during the pregnancy, or do Melinda’s concerns for her own autonomy take precedence?
2. What sort of responsibilities does Melinda have toward Tom and his concerns as the father of the child she’s carrying?
3. Do Tom and Melinda’s respective shares in decision-making change after the baby is born? If so, how and why?