Human Euthanasia
Human euthanasia has become an increasingly controversial topic over the recent years. Many believe that euthanasia should not be permitted, and should carry a tough punishment when preformed. What countless of people tend to forget, is that it is not their own personal bodies that are suffering, it’s not their lives that are going through endless treatments that would all be in vain. For the terminally ill, it can be a way to die with dignity and not have to witness their lives wither down to nothing. It can also save the patient from opting to commit suicide, causing their families an unnecessary heartbreak.
Human euthanasia has been a practice since the ancient Greek times. The term euthanasia means “good death” in Greek which appeared during the Hellenistic period (Papadimitriou). There are two different kinds of euthanasia, passive and active. Passive euthanasia is when a medical doctor fails to give a terminally ill patient treatment that would extend their life, even though death would still be the end outcome. Active euthanasia is when a licensed medical professional, or another human being deliberately …show more content…
On October 27, 1997 Oregon enacted the Death with Dignity Act which allows terminally-ill Oregonians to end their lives through the voluntary self-administration of lethal medications, expressly prescribed by a physician for that purpose (ProCon.org). The critically acclaimed film, How to Die in Oregon, gives the viewer a firsthand understanding of how assisted suicide affects the person going through it, as well as their thoughts for why they chose that option. It allows an outsider to get a glimpse into their final days. The viewer can focus on the good that can come out of assisted suicide, giving the patients a chance to end their lives surrounded by the people they love the
Human euthanasia has become an increasingly controversial topic over the recent years. Many believe that euthanasia should not be permitted, and should carry a tough punishment when preformed. What countless of people tend to forget, is that it is not their own personal bodies that are suffering, it’s not their lives that are going through endless treatments that would all be in vain. For the terminally ill, it can be a way to die with dignity and not have to witness their lives wither down to nothing. It can also save the patient from opting to commit suicide, causing their families an unnecessary heartbreak.
Human euthanasia has been a practice since the ancient Greek times. The term euthanasia means “good death” in Greek which appeared during the Hellenistic period (Papadimitriou). There are two different kinds of euthanasia, passive and active. Passive euthanasia is when a medical doctor fails to give a terminally ill patient treatment that would extend their life, even though death would still be the end outcome. Active euthanasia is when a licensed medical professional, or another human being deliberately …show more content…
On October 27, 1997 Oregon enacted the Death with Dignity Act which allows terminally-ill Oregonians to end their lives through the voluntary self-administration of lethal medications, expressly prescribed by a physician for that purpose (ProCon.org). The critically acclaimed film, How to Die in Oregon, gives the viewer a firsthand understanding of how assisted suicide affects the person going through it, as well as their thoughts for why they chose that option. It allows an outsider to get a glimpse into their final days. The viewer can focus on the good that can come out of assisted suicide, giving the patients a chance to end their lives surrounded by the people they love the