Preview

Harwig's "Is There a Duty to Die"

Satisfactory Essays
Open Document
Open Document
332 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Harwig's "Is There a Duty to Die"
Hardwig – “Is there a Duty to Die”
Summary
In John Hardwig’s “Is there a Duty to Die”, he builds upon Richard Lamms concept of there being a “Duty to Die”. According to Hardwig, there are particular circumstances which make it imperative for a person to fulfill their duty to their family and accept voluntary euthanasia which he frequently refers to as the “Duty to Die”. Generally, these circumstances revolve around cases in which the individual is chronically ill and has become more of an expense and liability to their family and loved ones than a productive component of it (3). Hardwig begins his argument by explaining this “duty” began in more primitive cultures when voluntary euthanasia was common simply due to the fact the medical technology was limited and when individuals became too old and feeble they would generally be left alone to die so to limit the economic strain they would put on their society. He explains that this same duty has returned due to the fact that advances in life-prolonging medicine on a chronically ill individual can put significant economic strains on their family and loved ones. Overall, he stresses the importance that one should make on involving the family in making a decision on euthanasia (7-8) and significantly discredits the “Individualistic Fantasy” which is the belief that “lives are separate and unconnected, or that they could be so if we chose” (2). As Hardwig begins to conclude his argument, he discusses the “meaning of death” and explains his argument that our society has become so entrapped in viewing death with negative and fearful connotations we have lost nearly all the meaning associated with it (11). Hardwig explains that since we do not live in an individualistic world and we are interconnected with society by family and loved ones, voluntary euthanasia would have meaning in the reasoning that it would keep those we love economically stable and capable of fulfilling their own long and rich

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Better Essays

    Euthanasia means “good death” but today the term is deemed as a merciful action to rid someone of suffering. In many cases we have seen terminally ill patients euthanized active or passive, yet for the sake of my essay I will discuss active euthanasia. End of life issues is a topic many families are faced with everyday more than one likes to imagine; however, imagine that you were a significant other who has a loved one in the hospital suffering from a terminal illness and their pain is unbearable that your loved one has decided to end his life and the subject of euthanasia comes up. What would you do? The…

    • 1769 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Better Essays

    Physician-assisted suicide is “the voluntary termination of one's own life by administration of a lethal substance with the direct or indirect assistance of a physician. Physician-assisted suicide is the practice of providing a competent patient with a prescription for medication for the patient to use with the primary intention of ending his or her own life” (MedicineNet.com, 2004). Many times this ethical issue arises when a terminally-ill patient with and incurable illness, whom is given little time to live, usually less than six-months, has requested a physician’s assistance in terminating one’s life. This practice with the terminally ill is known as euthanasia. Physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia is a controversial topic that brings up many ethical issues and the rights of the patients the physicians serve. Many questions arise when this topic is discussed. For example, does an individual have the right to end their life, if prolonging it will only cause more pain and suffering? Should families, who do not want to lose a loved one, be allowed to prolong the pain in the life of a terminally ill family member so they do not experience loss? Is this more or less ethical than letting the person die? This paper will examine why terminally-ill patients should be allowed to make decisions regarding their care and their life. This paper will examine a utilitarian perspective on physician-aided suicide, which provides a solid argument for allowing physician-assisted suicides in certain circumstances.…

    • 1475 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    There are two factors that have contributed to euthanasia’s distinction with how the world is today. They are both an increasing sense of self-determinism and medical revolution that have the potential of prolonging human life (Michigan, 2006). People think that just because there are things like hospice and medication that euthanasia shouldn’t even be an option. But what people don’t know is that even with the best medication and the patient being made completely comfortable, it is not the pain that causes people to ask for what people call a “hastened death”, but the humiliation and suffering that accompanies most terminal disorders.…

    • 2132 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Physician-assisted suicide (PAS) and euthanasia is a widely debated and controversial topic in our society. It is believed that the principle of PAS and euthanasia portrays, “merciful acts that deliver terminally ill patients from painful and protracted death” (page 477, column 2). In the paper, “Physician-Assisted Suicide: A Tragic View,” John D. Arras discusses the subject and states that while he agrees with patients making decisions, implementing laws supporting PAS and euthanasia is a huge threat to our social order. However, John D. Arras also concludes that he does not disapprove with the possibility of having a legislative policy in favor of PAS/euthanasia, only if there is “sufficient evidence of reliability of various safeguards” (page 477, column 2).…

    • 545 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    On the other hand, active euthanasia would reduce the patient X’s time of suffering much more effectively, therefore honoring his wishes. It may be argued that by employing active euthanasia, I am infringing on my patient’s right to life, but it would be wise to remember the patient’s autonomous request that I help him end his suffering. As a physician, I also must consider my duties to patient X: the negative duty to avoid injury and the positive duty to bring aid. As mentioned previously, the duty to avoid injury is often weighted heavier than the duty to bring aid. However, in this application of the positive and negative duties to patient X, the weight of negative to positive duties may change due to his circumstances and his own position on the matter.…

    • 1661 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    This basis is essential if the patient is to feel as though he or she is not abandoning all responsibility toward the family. However, this is not to say that the decision to end one 's life does not come without significant shock and sadness; indeed, while family members can be supportive and understanding on the one hand, this does not preclude them from also being extremely shaken and mournful on the other. There is quite a lot to be taken into consideration when endorsing a loved one 's euthanasia request; however, the ultimate decision is to always and ultimately rest with the terminally ill patient (Kowalski…

    • 2793 Words
    • 12 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Euthanasia Ethical Dilemma

    • 2102 Words
    • 9 Pages

    Euthanasia is a social issue in today’s world because not only does it affect the lives of those who are terminally ill and/or comatose, and the physicians who have been entrusted with their care, but it also affects the patient’s ability to have control over their own life, whether they are aware of this decision or not, which is one of the reasons why euthanasia has become such a controversial issue around the globe. Caddell and Newton (1995) define euthanasia as “any treatment initiated by a physician with the intent of hastening the death of another human being who is terminally ill and in severe pain or distress with the motive of relieving that person from great suffering” (p. 1,672). Even though the concept of great…

    • 2102 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Whether financially or emotionally, prolonged dying can prove incredibly detrimental to all of those involved. In a study conducted in 2000, 89% of patients said not being a burden to family was a very important consideration (Chantagul, Ho, 254). Typically very costly, medical treatment can financially cripple a family. A patient might rationalize euthanization but saying his death serves a greater good for his loved ones. A patient nearing death might also think it is better for him to die than have his family be so emotionally taxed by procedures prolonging the dying process. Euthanasia can offer a relief to a patient worried about causing his loved ones to suffer, giving the patient more peace in death.…

    • 1545 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Best Essays

    Hippocrates the father of modern medicine stated “I will give no deadly medicine to any one if asked, nor suggest any such counsel”: clearly he opposed the practice of euthanasia, known later in modern society as “assisted suicide.” The debate regarding Euthanasia or assisted suicide has been a subject that has been examined, discussed and ethically dissected for thousands of years. Early Roman and Greek cultures regarded euthanasia as an acceptable practice, both societies sharing the opinion that “there is no need to preserve the life of someone who has no interest in living.” Centuries later, as a result of shifting morals and values, assisted suicide has become an issue of the ethics of quality vs. the sanctity of life as well as one that conflicts with religion and politics (Keelan, 2006). When religion and politics are removed from the debate of assisted suicide, what remains is the desire of a terminally ill individual to choose to end their pain and suffering, to die of their own choosing with dignity and peace, to obtain a “good death.”…

    • 2913 Words
    • 12 Pages
    Best Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Euthanasia is the practice of mercifully ending a person 's life in order to free someone from a deadly disease. The Greek word “Euthanasia” simply means “good death”. This refers to the intentional ending of a person or animal’s life to relieve suffering and pain. It is also known as “Mercy Killing”. It is a serious ethical and political issue in today’s society because it goes against the norms of traditional medicine. It is so, because some people define euthanasia as a form of suicide. However, some people actually think that it is a choice that concerns the quality of life. In fact, people have different standards regarding the worth of life. Others believe that being clinically alive is enough to say that a person should live, but for others, it is simply inadequate. If a person’s life is lacking in self awareness or intrinsic presence as a human being, due to extreme physical or mental suffering, then that person should be able to choose a dignified death rather than an undignified existence. This is evident because of moral conscience, social bias or pressure, and financial situations. It is portrayed that nurture or environmental factors plays a role that make euthanasia more appealing. In short, some people tend to disregard the moral and ethical values of life when they see a person suffering. Indeed, despite of the moral and ethical issues that contradict the concept of euthanasia, there are certain factors it impacts society positively, which leads it to be more socially acceptable.…

    • 2280 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    If you were told you had a terminally ill disease and only had one more year to live, filled with suffering, what would you chose to do? This question leads us to the sensitive and controversial topic of euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide. Euthanasia can simply be defined as physician-assisted death for terminally ill patients. This issue has stirred debates that have drawn attention to the complex issues concerning the ethical implications of end-of-life care. Supporters of euthanasia argue that they seek only to prevent unnecessary suffering while the critics maintain that it is unethical to end an individual’s life. However, many public opinions have reported that over 80% of the general population support amendments in the law to…

    • 889 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Right To Die Controversy

    • 1189 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Who are we to say when we should die? Are we trying to play God, or do we just want the right to end the inevitable a little sooner than God’s plan for us? This paper will discuss pros and cons of euthanasia with stories and research. Such as the case of a ninety five year old comma patient, whose family receives the news that she could live for months, years even in a vegetative state on life support; leaving the family questioning whether or not to pull the plug and put an end to what otherwise would be like the “death of a hundred deaths.”…

    • 1189 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Ethics of Euthanasia

    • 1579 Words
    • 7 Pages

    One of the most hotly debated topics going on through the government is the one concerning the ethics of euthanasia also known as assisted suicide. Euthanasia comes from the Greek language meaning ‘Good death’. Euthanasia is suicide, but with the help of a doctor. The government and people argue about whether it should be legalized or not, this is because it can be seen as unethical and it taking the ills life. I think assisted suicide should be legal because we have the right and moral obligation to euthanize our beloved pets when they are suffering and in pain... why are we not morally obligated to provide the same options for ourselves and our loved ones who have no quality of life? Euthanasia fascinates me because not much people of my age are aware of what it is exactly and how much that it could actually help out in the society if it was to be legalized. Euthanasia should be legalized we have ‘the peoples rights’, it cost more to keep someone on life support and it is a way out of unnecessary suffering for the ill.…

    • 1579 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Euthanasia, comes from the Greek word meaning “good death”, and is the practice of assisted suicide with the purpose of relieving pain and agony. The people who opt for euthanasia suffer from an incurable and painful disease or are in an irreversible coma. Euthanasia has been the subject of much moral, religious, philosophical, legal and human rights debate in Australia. At the core of this debate is how to…

    • 1022 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Assisted Suicide

    • 1770 Words
    • 8 Pages

    Today’s doctors are now performing what is known as physician-assisted suicide, which is when a doctor sets up a machine, but the patient actually kills him or herself. The right to assisted suicide is a significant topic that concerns people all over the United States. The debates go back and forth about whether a dying patient has the right to die with the assistance of a physician. Some are against it because of religious and moral reasons, and some are for it because of their compassion and respect for the dying. Physicians also take a big role on this issue. They differ where they place the line that separates relief from dying--and killing. The main concern with assisted suicide lies with the competence of the terminally ill. Terminally ill patients who are in the final stages of their lives have requested doctors to aid them in exercising active euthanasia. It is sad to realize that these people are in great agony and that to them the only hope of bringing that agony to a halt is through assisted suicide. When people see the word euthanasia, they see the meaning of the word in two different lights. Euthanasia for some carries a negative connotation; it is the same as murder. However for others, euthanasia is the act of putting someone to death painlessly, or allowing a person suffering from an incurable and painful disease or condition to die by withholding extreme medical measures. But after studying both sides of the issue, a compassionate individual must conclude that competent terminal patients should be given the right to assisted suicide in order to end their suffering, reduce the damaging financial…

    • 1770 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Powerful Essays