RCL1: Mother Knows Best

Take a minute to put yourself in the shoes of a scared young woman going to make what she has decided is the best decision for her at that time: to terminate a pregnancy. As she walks into Planned Parenthood, she is accosted by protesters begging her to change her mind, threatening her with going to hell, or holding a sign proclaiming “Planned Parenthood sells baby parts.”

Abortion is one of those hot-button topics that generally makes people tense up and change the subject as quickly as possible. When it’s not being hushed and stigmatized, the communication about it is generally hostile and one-sided to one extreme or the other. I believe that abortion should be destigmatized and talked about in a more open and accepting way. Furthermore, I think protests outside of abortion clinics are unacceptable as they show disrespect to the woman’s choice.

Communication should involve a two-sided conversation in which both sides are listened to and respected. However, the current state of rhetoric regarding abortion is an argument rather than a conversation. Protestors, signs, and even people in the woman’s life all adamantly claim to know what’s best for her. I have seen billboards, posters, posts on the internet, etc. shaming women for their choice and spreading nonfactual information about abortion. This isn’t to say that pro-choice protests aren’t common to see as well, and I think that the communication should be better on both sides in some cases. However, many of these protests are in defense of women who are being harassed for their choices outside of a clinic.

Overall, I believe that the state of rhetoric regarding abortion could be defined as overly critical. Everyone has an opinion, and most people seem to be dying to push that opinion onto someone, especially a woman who is exercising her right to abortion. Changing abortion laws is a whole other topic, but ultimately I believe that regardless of what you would chose for yourself, you need to respect another person’s choice. A woman facing a difficult choice already does not need your opinion on her body forced down her throat.

One thing we discussed in class this week was civic duty, and something pointed out was that at the bare minimum, we should respect, listen to, and be kind to others. This means dropping the criticism and stigma around abortion and respecting the choices of your fellow citizens.

9 Thoughts.

The hook in the first paragraph requires readers to really take a moment to see a controversial issue such as Abortion through the eyes of a perspective they may not have seen or cared to think about in context. It’s a great way to Segway into the actual message of your writing on the state of rhetoric regarding abortion. The idea of listening to others views and being kind to others (as stated in the last paragraph) is a message that really resonates with me, and I think it was a great way to end the discussion!

I love that you put readers into the shoes of someone planning to get an abortion right from the first sentence. Not only does this hook readers, but it also makes people think about what that person is going through, and how this controversial issue can directly affect their future.

I love the first paragraph, as you’re telling the reader to visualize themselves as someone planning to get an abortion, and it makes them think of the choice they’re about to make. I’m a firm believer in listening to both sides and then making a choice, since everyone has a freedom of choice, and abortion is no exception. Pressurizing won’t help with the choice making, and everything should be dealt with rationally and in a civil manner.

I thought that the use of imagery and diction in the first paragraph was used phenomenally. It clearly painted a picture for the reader of a situation that too many women have had to endure. I think it was a powerful intro to the idea that the topic of abortion is not one to be argued, yet one to be discussed. I absolutely agree with your stance because people on both sides take such a cold approach to the issue as if it is as clear as right and wrong, thus losing sight of the women at the heart of it and the experiences and hardships they go through.