Euthanasia, or “good death”, is a controversial topic because it involves the participation of an agent – in this paper, a doctor or medical professional – in an act of intentional killing. In this paper I will focus on voluntary euthanasia, where doctors administer a lethal injection to a patient who requests it as a means of ending their unbearable suffering. I will discuss why a utilitarian ethicist would agree with arguments in favor of voluntary euthanasia whereas a natural law ethicist would not agree. The Utilitarian Ethicist Under the circumstances of voluntary euthanasia, the action is carried out at the request of the patient. The patient’s exercise of autonomy – the ability of a rational individual to make a well-informed and un-coerced …show more content…
The problem natural law ethicists have is that laws prohibiting an action can broaden and expand after an action is pronounced legal, infiltrating every crevice of society. For example, voluntary euthanasia is directed towards those individuals who are terminally ill and suffering, however, once the permission to intentionally kill has been extended to one group, it is presented and justified to other groups of people, such as the depressed and disabled. Once a practice such as euthanasia is legalized and becomes widely accepted, the public’s conscience will numb and people will cease to have strong feelings. Natural law ethicists would further argue that consenting to voluntary euthanasia – especially without regulation – would increase the risk of those who do not want to be killed, into becoming reluctant victims and being killed. Furthermore, legalized euthanasia would create social pressure on the most vulnerable people of society, compelling them to cease being a burden and volunteer to die, eventually leading to further stress and suffering. The devaluing of some lives – such as those of the elderly and the disabled – tells them that death is better than being sick or disabled; tolerating euthanasia means accepting that the lives of some are worth much less than the lives of