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Abstract

Life situations often seem to require dualistic, either or decision making, but this common method does not always clarify moral decisions. To show this, standard arguments on why to choose or not to choose the sex or ones child are presented. Then, our feminist thinking, which regards clusters of values, and which reframes questions rather than choosing between desirable alternatives, suggests another possibility, in a gynandrous world vision.

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Additional information

These ideas on dualism and feminist values develop within community. The biological and ethical considerations that provided the impetus for this article were developed for a National Women's Studies Association panel organized by Helen Bequaert Holmes for June 1983; they appear in the anthologyTest-Tube Women — What Future for Motherhood? (Hoskins and Holmes, 1984). The ethical implications of feminism for dualistic thinking were presented by Betty B. Hoskins at Collegium, an Association of Liberal Religious Scholars, in October 1983. Dr. Hoskins is an independent scholar and Senior Technical Editor, to whom reprint requests can be addressed at 5 Paradox Drive, Worcester Massachusetts 01602. Dr. Holmes is the 1984–85 guest worker at the Science and Society Program, University of Groningen, The Netherlands.

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Hoskins, B.B., Holmes, H.B. When not to choose: A case study. J Med Hum 6, 28–37 (1985). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01149836

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