Arguments For and Against Birth Control​

What is Birth Control?

     When it comes to birth control, the idea of being against it or for it, comes down to what an individual defines birth control as being. In some opinions, anything that prevents or terminates a pregnancy would be considered some type of birth control. Others would limit their definition of birth control only to those things that actually prevent a pregnancy, (i.e. birth control pills, condoms, diaphragms, or surgeries such as hysterectomies). For the purposes of this paper, the definition of birth control will be limited to those forms that simply prevent pregnancy and not those that terminate a pregnancy.

Arguments For Birth Control

     In what is probably the most hailed purpose for birth control is its usage as a means of controlling the population. Proponents of this idea state that the world, with its population of 7 billion plus people, is greatly overpopulated. It is only through the use of birth control that we can stop this meteoric ride to self-destruction by the inability of the earth to sustain our population.

Another argument in favor of birth control is concern for those who simply can’t afford to raise children. In some cases this might mean that the parents already have 1 or 2 children, but would become financially strapped were they to have more. In other cases, some couples want to have children, but would rather wait a few years until they are more financially able to afford them. In cases such as these, advocates say, birth control needs to be readily available and affordable.

​     A third argument for the need of the availability of inexpensive birth control is in situations in which a woman is not healthy enough to have a child. Although medical advances have made the incidences of endangerment, and even death, a much smaller problem than in years past, there are still women today who might possibly suffer serious consequences related either to the pregnancy or the birth itself. These are the women who would benefit from the availability of birth control products, say advocates.

Arguments Against Birth Control

     Although many people are for the sale and use of all or at least some of the many forms of birth control, there are still many people who object to the sale or use of any birth control products, regardless of the reason. One such group is that which opposes it on religious grounds. The biggest purveyor of this belief is the Catholic Church. What is the Catholic Church’s reason for denying its congregants the right to practice any type of contraception? According to the Catholic Answers website, Pope Paul VI stated, “it is always intrinsically wrong to use contraception to prevent new human beings from coming into existence.” (Birth Control) The Catholic Church teaches that the main, if not only purpose of intercourse is for the purpose of procreation. Although pleasure is allowed in the act, no sexual act is allowed which is for the sole purpose of enjoyment. Thus, intercourse using any type of contraceptive would be deemed sinful according to Catholic doctrine.

​     Another argument in the debate concerning birth control isn’t so much an argument against birth control itself, as much as it is against the purpose of birth control. Although many people have promoted the use of various methods of birth control to combat the surge in the population, there exists another group that challenges that assertion saying that the earth is indeed not overpopulated. It was said a few years ago, when the earth’s population was roughly six billion, that if all the people in the world at the time were placed in the same location roughly forty feet away from each other, then the whole world population could be gathered together in an area the size of Texas with room left over. When one does the math, they find this statement to be correct. Even with the rise in population to the 7 billion of today, everyone would fit inside of Texas and Oklahoma, and the rest of the world would still be empty. Although land mass isn’t the only factor when considering whether or not the earth is overpopulated (one must also take into consideration the natural resources, food, and water requirements needed to sustain life), one can see from the example above that the world is a lot bigger place than we give it credit. Regardless, those who say that the earth is far from being overpopulated believe that the earth’s carrying capacity is much higher than the current population. According to the How Stuff Workswebsite, “if everyone on the planet consumed only what he or she needed, 40 billion would be a feasible number”. (Layton)

Weighing All the Facts

     No matter what side of the argument you are on, reasons to support your position can always be found. One must look at both sides of the story and compare all the facts available in order to determine which side you will agree with. Notwithstanding, it will always be an interesting debate.

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References

Birth Control. Catholic Answers website. Retrieved April 5, 2016 from http://www.catholic.com/tracts/birth-control

Layton, Julia. Has Earth reached its carrying capacity? How Stuff Works website. Retrieved April 5, 2016 from http://science.howstuffworks.com/environmental/green-science/earth-carrying-capacity.htm
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© 2018 Stephen Moore

The Chartres Cathedral/ A Comparison of Two Nativities

Even before you enter the Chartres Cathedral, its magnificence will undoubtedly overwhelm you.  Approaching the cathedral from the west, your gaze is immediately drawn heavenward. Even without the two gothic towers bordering the west façade of the cathedral with their conical tops pointing to the Heavens, the rose window decorating the upper middle portion of the front wall will undoubtedly capture your wandering eyes, locking them in its glorious brilliance.  But even its powerful grasp is not enough to hold you once the two towers grab ahold of you. Almost it seems, they have not only clasped onto your sight, but even your whole being.  So strong is this pull that you feel that you have been lifted so high, that if you raised your arm, and stretched forth your finger, you just might be able to touch the throne of God.

Lest your raptured soul takes its flight to Paradise, you must quickly shake off this feeling of euphoria and make your way up the stairs to the Royal Portal, a set of three doors piercing the west façade of the cathedral.  Due to lack of time, you must direct your attention to the tympanum above the middle portal with just a cursory glance toward those on the right and left.  (The tympanum on the right depicts a seated Mary holding the child Jesus, while the one on the right shows the ascension of Christ to Heaven.)  Centered under the middle arch is Christ at the Second Coming. Immediately surrounding him are symbolic reliefs depicting the writers of the four Gospels: Matthew as an angel, Mark as a lion, Luke as a bull, and John as an eagle.  Standing directly below Christ and the four writers are the twelve apostles.  In the inner archivolt Christ is surrounded by twelve angels, two of whom are crowning him as Christ the King.  These angels are in turn surrounded in the outer two archivolts by the twenty-four elders of the Apocalypse.  On the door jams, on each of the portals, Old Testament kings and queens are depicted in changing styles from Early Gothic to High Gothic.  Unfortunately, as Laurie Adams states in her book, “many of these statues were destroyed during the French Revolution in 1789 by rioting crowds that mistook the biblical figures for kings and queens of France”. (208)

As you step through the portals and enter the nave between the two towers you will notice that bordering the nave on each side are two small aisles.  The aisles are divided from the nave via a series of cluster piers with colonnettes.  As you step into the nave the view is breathtaking.  The soaring piers on either side, and the rays of colored light spilling through the stained-glass windows are magnificent, but “the overwhelming sensation on entering Chartres Cathedral from the western entrance”, as one author puts it in A History of Western Art(212), “is height.”  The ceiling vaults shoot up a staggering 120 feet.

As you head east down the nave you will soon come to the crossing where, by looking left and right, you can observe the north and south entrances.  Embedded in the north transept is a 42-foot diameter rose window, so called due to its shape.  This rose window is surrounded by geometric shapes, royal coats of arms, and depictions of biblical figures.  Depending on the time of day, the brightness of the light varies in intensity as it passes through the stained glass.

As you walk through the crossing you will next pass by the choir.  Around this area to the back you will then enter the apse, a large semicircular recess located at the end of the cathedral, in what is known as the liturgical area (the location of the altar).  Protruding out of the apse is what are known as radiating chapels; each with its own display of biblical history in illuminating stained glass. As you look at the marvelous handiwork and consider the amount of finances poured into this great cathedral, it begs the question:  were the people displaying their love of God, or were they buying their way into Heaven?

    A Comparison of Two Nativities

     When comparing the nativity scenes depicted by Giotto and Pisano, one cannot help but notice the striking differences between the two artists’ renderings.  Not only have they used different mediums-Giotto painted a fresco, Pisano sculpted a bas relief-but their use of space is glaringly different.  Spaced out over a wide area, Giotto’s painting shows two scenes: the annunciation to the shepherds and the nativity.  Pisano however crams four scenes (the nativity, along with the annunciations to Mary and the shepherds, and a scene of Mary bathing the infant Jesus) into a very limited space.  Whereas Mary dominates the central space in Pisano’s sculpture, and the infant Jesus is relegated to an unimportant position behind her, the mother and child in Giotto’s painting seem to equally hold positions of importance as they gaze lovingly at each other from the left side of the picture. Regardless of the differences depicted in these works of art, it is obvious that both men had a passion unequaled by many.

 

© 2018 Stephen Moore.  All rights reserved.

View Stephen’s Words of Wisdom Blog for more essays.

 

 

 

References

Adams, Laurie Schneider. A History of Western Art.  New York: McGraw-Hill, 2011

Genetic Diversity: Mutations, Sexual Reproduction, Migration, and Population Size

Genetic diversity is the variation in the characteristics inherited from the parent organisms in a population of a specific species.  This diversity is extremely important for the survival of a species as it allows for the survival of certain members when a portion of the group is destroyed either through disease, changing environments, or other factors that are detrimental to their survival.  Genetic diversity can come about through a number of ways: mutations, sexual reproduction, migration, and population size.

Mutations are changes in the alleles that introduce new genetic information into a group.   While some mutations are readily visible (two-headed snakes, five-legged sheep, frogs with six-eyes, etc.), many other mutations are not so obvious.  An organism that is susceptible to a certain disease, for example.  While mutations will introduce new characteristics into a population, these changes are almost always harmful, and usually lead to death in a species, not to an improvement.

Sexual reproduction, unlike mutations, does not cause the creation of new alleles, but rather combines different alleles from the parent organisms to introduce new combinations of alleles. If an organism receives a combination of alleles that cause it to be more likely to survive than others in its community, then it will be better able to produce offspring, which will in turn inherit these genes and pass them on to their offspring.  The main advantages of sexual reproduction over asexual reproduction, as stated by the Journal of Evolutionary Philosophy, is this ability to combine genes from different organisms because now “beneficial mutations from separate ancestries can be combined, beneficial mutations can be separated from harmful mutations, and unsuccessful genetic traits can easily disappear from an existing population.”

The migrations of groups from one location to another allow them to come into contact with others of their own species. As these different groups meet and interact, they also begin to breed with each other.  Certain alleles that are absent in one group are generally present in the other group.  Many times these missing genes are important to the survival of the species.  As the two groups begin to interbreed, these missing genes now become a part of the genetic makeup of the species.  Interbreeding in turn also allows for the combinations of beneficial characteristics that would otherwise never occur within a single group.

Another factor that can contribute to the genetic diversity, or lack there of, is the size of the population. Obviously, the larger a population is, the greater the diversity.  The problem with a smaller population is not only the extreme lack of diversity, but also the fact that genes that are in a community can be lost over time.  One way this happens is through what is called genetic drift.  Genetic drift occurs whenever a small portion of a group carries a certain gene.  If every organism that carries this gene fails to produce offspring, whether it is through an early death or the inability to find a mate, this gene will be lost forever.  This is especially detrimental to a species if this characteristic is important to the survival of this particular species.

Genetic diversity is what allows a species to survive.  As environments, populations, and circumstances change, so too must a species adapt to these changes.  The greater genetic diversity there is in a group, the better able it is to pass on beneficial genes to their offspring.  Even as certain characteristics lie dormant, they are still a part of the makeup of the species, and thus are there when needed if environment or certain situations call for them.

© 2018 Stephen Moore.  All rights reserved.

Read Stephen’s “Words of Wisdom” Blog.

 

References

    The Evolution of Sexual Reproduction.  Date published unk.  Author unk.  2006

http://www.evolutionary-philosophy.net/sex.html

The Journey Begins

This Blog contains a series of essays I wrote as required papers for Ashworth College in my pursuit of a Bachelor’s Degree in Education.  Undoubtedly I acquired a vast amount of knowledge in doing research for these papers.  My goal is to pass this information on to you, the reader.  My hope is that you will increase your learning as I did.  Enjoy.

Good company in a journey makes the way seem shorter. — Izaak Walton