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To: Bowana
Most definitions of the word "Person" include the words Human and Individual.

And most of the definitions of "individual" include the word person. Thus, you cannot rely on the dictionary to determine if the fetus is a person or individual.

The actual history of the tretment of the fetus is more complex. Well before Roe v. Wade, the law did not treat the fetus as a full person until it had "quickened" (remember this goes bck to the 19th Century). "Quickened" generally meant that the fetus took on the form of a human being and had other characteristics of individuality such as an independant heartbeat. So, in the 19th Century if you shot and killed an expectant mother before the fetus quickened you would be charged with one murder. After the fetus quickened you would be charged with two.

Of course, modern science has demonstrated that the fetus has all of these signs of signularity at a very early stage of development. Traditionally, dependency on another for life has not been a test of personhood.

54 posted on 08/05/2002 6:16:59 PM PDT by CharacterCounts
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To: CharacterCounts
And most of the definitions of "individual" include the word person. Thus, you cannot rely on the dictionary to determine if the fetus is a person or individual.

No, not in the actual definition of the word Individual it doesn't.

An animal is an individual, and so is a bug.

79 posted on 08/05/2002 6:33:27 PM PDT by Bowana
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