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Ethical Arguments Against Euthanasia

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In the words of the famous philosopher, Sophocles, “Death is not the worst evil, but rather when we wish to die and cannot.” He was speaking of, what was called in his time ‘mercy killing. It is more widely known as euthanasia today. According to James D. Torr, “Euthanasia is a broad term for mercy killing—taking the life of a hopelessly ill or injured individual in order to end his or her suffering…The term “euthanasia” is derived from Ancient Greek, and means ‘good death’” (Torr 12). This concept of mercy killing has been around for many centuries and is rapidly developing far beyond just doctors allowing patients to kill themselves. Today, it includes six basic degrees: discontinuing life-support, discontinuing feeding or hydration, withholding …show more content…

There are two main sectors to this stance: the ethical argument and the pragmatic argument. The ethical argument states that people should have freedom of choice, including the right to control their own body and life and that the state should not create laws that prevent people being able to choose when and how they die. Perhaps the biggest piece of this argument is quality of life. The statement that life is sacred and is therefore always better than death is rejected. This arguments’ basis suggests that life should only continue as long as a person feels their life is worth living. They view assisted dying as “a compassionate act voluntarily requested by a patient who is destined to die and wants to die to relieve their suffering. As such, it should be carried out only after open dialogue with one's physician and significant others, assessment of all other options, opportunities for counseling, and serious reflection” (Torr 21). The pragmatic argument states that euthanasia, especially passive euthanasia, is already a widespread practice, just not one that people are willing to confess to, so surely it is better to properly regulate it. Many of the practices used as end-of-life care are essentially a type of euthanasia in all but name. Some of these practices include a DNR order or palliative sedation. It is stated that euthanasia is ethical as long as they do not abuse another persons rights

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