Persuasive Essay On Euthanasia

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If suicide is a complicated issue, euthanasia reaches a new height of complexity considering the numerous stakeholders involved in the decision to, not to and how to undergo euthanasia. Also known as mercy killing, Euthanasia refers to the situation in which "doctors assist in bringing about the patient's requested painless death"(Chun, 2017). In cases where euthanasia is permissible, patients are usually "chronically ill, terminally ill...or in a persistent comatose state"(Chun, 2017). The question states whether the patient has the right to 'determine' the time to die. This assumes that the patient is conscious and well enough to make an informed, well-considered decision. If this is the case then the existentialist standpoint would be yes, the right lies in the hands of the patient, however, if given the choice, the patient should choose not to be euthanized. For existentialists, so long as one is conscious, one can still imagine a future and strive towards a self-determined goal. To live a meaningful life is to be able to identify a meaning in an otherwise meaningless world, to succeed you must remain scornful to life regardless of the desirability of your current situation. A key belief in existentialism states "existence before essence"(Chun, 2017). This means that nothing is predetermined, change …show more content…

Choosing the harder path gives their lives meaning as that would be a form of rebellion and refusal of death. This is applicable in the case of euthanasia as the terminally ill patient faces death closer than most. One problem with this train of thought is that as courageous and heroic as it seems, in the face of chronicle pain and suffering, it is never easy to make a choice that brings more pain. The existentialist philosophy assumes that people think rationally amidst pain, yet reality often proves