Euthanasia

• what is euthanasia?

  assisted suicide. means 'good death'
• What is active euthanasia?

  A treatment is given that directly causes the death of the individual.
• Non-voluntary euthanasia

  Where are severely or terminally ill persons life has ended without their consent, perhaps because they are unable to give consent.
• Passive euthanasia


  A treatment is withheld and this indirectly causes the death of the individual.
• Sanctity of life


  The idea that life is intrinsically sacred or valuable.
• Voluntary euthanasia


  Where a persons life is ended at their own request. Usually this is done by another individual and is because of a terminal illness.
• Euthanasia

  Good death
• Euthanasia

  Act that brings about a painful death of a person suffering
• Types of euthanasia

  • Active euthanasia
  • Passive euthanasia
• Active euthanasia


  Deliberately bringing about a death of the person (e.g. overdose of medicine)
• Passive euthanasia


  Failing to prevent the death of the person when intervention is in the agent's power (e.g. turning off life support)
• Types of voluntary euthanasia

  • Voluntary
  • Non-voluntary
  • Involuntary
• Voluntary euthanasia


  Intentional ending of a person's life with informed consent or by request
• Non-voluntary euthanasia


  Where a person cannot make a decision for themselves or is incapable of making their wishes known
• Involuntary euthanasia


  Decision to euthanise a person is made against their wishes or without their consent
• Criteria for personhood


  • Social recognition
  • Moral community
• Moral community


  Fully rational, healthy, functioning adult humans might be considered persons, just because someone cares about them
• Personhood


  Sentience, the ability to feel pleasure and pain
• Speciesism - Shouldn't discriminate based on species
• Criteria for personhood


  • Genetic
  • Potentiality
  • Consciousness
  • Reasoning
  • Self-motivated activity
  • Capacity for self-awareness
  • Capacity to communicate
• Euthanasia comes from the Greek for 'good death'
• Principles of sanctity of life

  • Life is sacred and God-given
  • Preservation of human life is of the utmost importance
  • Destruction of human life is wrong
• In Judeo-Christian tradition, the belief that human life is sacred comes from an idea of Divine creation
• Genesis 1:26-28: '"Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so God created mankind in his own image"'
• Psalm 139:13-16: '"For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb - I was fearfully and wonderfully made"'
• Job 1:21: '"I was born with nothing and I will die with nothing. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away"'
• God alone has the power to create and end life - we cannot/shouldn't play God!
• Exodus 20:13 - "You shall not murder"
• Euthanasia goes against the Hippocratic oath for doctors to save life
• Gradient theory of personhood - personhood comes in degrees, so you can have more and less of it
• Criteria for personhood


  • Self-awareness
  • Capable of rational thinking
  • Consciousness
  • Morality
  • Ability to survive independently
  • Human genetic make-up
• Sanctity of life


  The conservative, sometimes also called the 'strong' sanctity of life view, claims that because God created human life, only God has the right to end it. Humans were created in God's image, further suggesting that human life is especially valuable
• Beliefs of conservative Catholics and Protestants


  • The strong sanctity of life principle is justified by the Bible
  • Natural Law ethics provides justification for the conservative sanctity of life principle
• Sixth of the ten commandments: 'Thou shalt not murder'
• 1 Corinthians 6:19: 'Your body is a temple of the holy spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God. You do not belong to yourself'
• Genesis 9:6: 'Whoever sheds human blood, by humans shall their blood be shed; for in the image of God has God made mankind'
• Weak sanctity of life view

  Proponents criticise the strong version by pointing out that although the sanctity of life is found in the Bible, it is only one of many biblical principles and themes. Compassion is another important principle that should be considered
• The Bible is against killing, with no exception mentioned for the sake of compassion
• Quality of life


  How happy or unhappy a life is. Proponents regard it as a valid ethical consideration because they think that life has to be of a certain quality in order for it to count as worth living
• Peter Singer's view


  • Quality of life is an important factor in euthanasia
  • Recommends non-voluntary euthanasia for babies whose potential quality of life is low