As the "dominant" species on Earth, the human life is viewed as a precious life form worth protecting, saving, cherishing, and immortalizing. The human goal is to live beyond his years on Earth, ultimately becoming a coveted spirit in the human world. With the social construction of the value of human life, the life itself must be defined. So the question poses itself; What is life? "Life", is one of the few words in language that has infinite definitions, and the meaning of this term is constantly reinvented.
According to the Oxford English Dictionary the definition of life is " The condition or attribute of living or being alive; animate existence. Opposed to death or inanimate existence." However within this definition it is further define through several different lenses as follows:" Animate existence (esp. that of a human being) viewed as a possession of which one is deprived by death. In Christianity and some other religious traditions: a state or condition of existence in which a person is freed from a state of sin (equated with spiritual death: cf. death n. 3a) and made spiritually regenerate, both during and (esp.) after his or her earthly life; salvation, blessedness; regeneration. A person or other being endowed with life; a living being, a person.In extended use: something which represents the cause or source of living or of vitality; a vivifying or animating principle; a person who or that which makes or keeps a thing alive (in various senses); ‘soul’; ‘essence. The living world or human experience regarded as the subject for artistic representation; spec. the living form or model, esp. as represented in art (in modern use often connoting the nude form); life-size presentation; (also) the living representation or semblance of some quality, emotion, etc.
Freq. with the. Now chiefly in fixed phrases. The animate existence of an individual living person, animal, etc., viewed with regard to its duration; the period from birth to death, from birth to a particular time, or from a particular time to death. The term of duration of an inanimate thing; the time that a manufactured object lasts or is usable."
With these many definitions of life there are two arguments that divulge; One that life is the existence of animate organism and the other that life is given to inanimate objects as well. However, if you were to review the many definitions you can see that life is equated to the human experience, which can only come through personhood. Then the debate that I must evaluate is when does human life begin. Does human life begin through personhood, or during conception?
In science, there are two distinct theories that are present in this debate. The first is that human life begins when the female egg is fertilized by the male sperm producing life. The second believe that life begins when the life is birthed, and consciousness occurs. These theories are explored within this website.