Euthanasia

Should voluntary assisted death be legalized?

Euthanasia
Euthanasia has been in use for thousands of year, its root meaning comes from the Greek term- Eu(Happy) and the term thanatos(death), meaning Happy Death. There is ongoing controversy and debate whether or not euthanasia should be legalized in the United States.

Euthanasia
Euthanasia is a very generalized term for a

painless death. Typically, euthanasia is divided into subfields which are broken down circumstantially.

V o l n ta ry E u th a n a si u a

Pa ssi ve A cti ve

I vo l n ta ry E u th a n a si n u a

Moral codes The Taboo of Euthanasia

Few Examples Christianity: Your body isnt yours its property of god.(1Cori R e l g i u s i o Islam:vi w not kill (or destroy) yourself(Quran4:29). e h a ve Do s sh a p e dHindu:ra l ty , against the practice due to the damage it creates m o Urge e th i i cs a n d thOrthodox l w , a:s opposes euthanasia e re fo re Church a a re su l , e u th a n a si i n o t t a s Nearly i all religious groups, forbid euthanasia p ra cti d ce n m any co u n tri s e

y in the world the majority embrace a moral value which bans the use of euthanasi

Ethical views of Euthanasia

(Consequentialism , Deontology , Virtue Theory )

Consequentialism

Deontology

Recall, that utilitarianism is the concept of maximizing pleasure or happiness over that of pain. Euthanasia can not possibly induce any form of pleasure by the individual, or by the aggregate society as a whole. It could be debated, however, if minimizing pain could include death? Ex . The individual is suffering terribly and would be better off feeling nothing!

An action is moral if its in agreement with the moral rules of the society. Euthanasia fails in most cases simply because most society adopts a morality which feels its immoral. This is not true in Oregon, where assisted suicide is practiced. Lastly, there is no moral code that exists that fosters the ideology that self termination is the right and moral thing to do even if you are suffering a ill fate.

Ethical view of Euthanasia

Virtue Theory

[I]f virtue theory is described as a moral right if the individual is acting in a manner which is in accordance with what a good model citizen would do then euthanasia can never be considered as the morally right thing to do. Aristotle also applied this concept to a manner of function. If the function of a pen is to write, then a good pen would be one that writes well. So if the function of a human is to thrive and flourish in well being, then a morally good human would be one that is fulfilled. (Aristotles Moral Theory). Consented self-termination can not produce any enrichment in ones life or society

Conclusion

In concluding whether or not euthanasia should be legalized, I would have to say that nearly all normative theories of ethics would say that it is the morally wrong thing to do. Further, even if they did legalize euthanasia I think it would be difficult to find a health care practitioner who would engage in assisting one to their own death, as it is often in contrast with the principles of Medical Ethics. However, from a libertarian view, your body is your property and you should have the right to do what ever they want with their bodies. They would argue what criteria is needed in order for euthanasia to be considered ethical?