Persuasive Essay Against Euthanasia

Doctors are whom people delegate their lives to when there is something wrong with their health. Death is perhaps the most personal, intimate event of any time. One may believe suffering towards the end of death should be avoided with Euthanasia. Various sources disapprove of the legalization of euthanasia. I believe that all people deserve the right to die in natural timing.

Euthanasia or physician assisted suicide, is the painless killing of a patient, suffering from a painful or incurable disease, like cancer, or alzheimer 's, the practice is illegal in most countries, including the United States, although in the United States, it is a state decision, the only state in the United States that it is legal in is Oregon. Oregon passed the Death with Dignity Act in 1994, making euthanasia legal for chronically ill patients, the only caveat is that the doctor is allowed to prescribe the medication, but they are not allowed to administer the drugs, the patient must do that themselves (Arnold, 17, 2004). Euthanasia is a controversial topic that can spark many different feelings. Some people may feel that if they are suffering that they want to end their pain, or if they have a fatal illness that they just want to speed the process along. Others, generally not a patient that is in the situation that would be in a position to consider euthanasia as a real option, feels that it is murder and morally wrong. As a potential social worker, I must say that I feel that euthanasia is wrong and should not be practiced in any form. I feel that palliative or end of life care that would make the patient more comfortable in their final days is a more valuable option than ending a life prematurely with the assistance of a doctor.

Euthanasia has been around for many generations. However it has often been questioned whether or not a patient whom has no hope of recovery has the right to decide when and how to end their life. Euthanasia is often defined as ‘the act of deliberately ending a person’s life to relieve suffering’ (NHS choices , 2014). Euthanasia is also described as Mercy killing, however Mercy killing is occasionally defined as allowing someone to die, by withholding extreme medical measures (Dictionary.com, 2015 ). Euthanasia is a very complex issue and has been a controversial issue for a long time, dating back to the time when ancient romans and Greeks supported euthanasia and its practice after the Hippocratic

The ultimate value of life depends upon awareness and the power of contemplation rather than upon mere survival. Aristotle

According to American Heritage Dictionary euthanasia is defined as "the art or practice of ending the life of a person or animal having a terminal illness or a medical condition that causes suffering." Euthanasia should be a individual choice to end a patient 's life. This keeps them from going through excruciating pain due to an incurable disease. Some people think euthanasia should be out of the picture while others inquiry the effectiveness of these actions. With effectiveness, euthanasia is classified in three categories.

“Euthanasia is the act of putting to death painlessly or allowing to die, as by withholding extreme medical measures, a person or animal suffering from an incurable, especially a painful, disease or condition” (dictionary.com). The word itself comes from Greek- the ‘eu’ means good and ‘Thanatos’ means death. Euthanasia literally means good death (Humphry 2). Currently euthanasia is legal in Belgium, India, Colombia, Ireland, Luxemburg, Mexico and the Netherlands (“where is euthanasia legal?” 1-2). Since euthanasia ends someone’s suffering and is completely painless, many Americans support it. Because of the beneficial effects of euthanasia, it should be legalized in the United States because it is justifiable under certain circumstances, both

Envision one of your family members being diagnosed with end-stage cancer that has spread throughout their entire body. They are helplessly suffering from pain that cannot be controlled with any type of treatment or pain medications. Meanwhile your cousin has been watching her father slowly die and lose all quality of life. While some doctors believe that assisted suicide is morally wrong, it is the right way to end the pain and suffering of terminal illnesses in certain situations. If that family member could have been given the option of assisted suicide, they wouldn’t have to go through so much unnecessary suffering and they could die with dignity.

Euthanasia is a very controversial topic that has been around for many years. It has a wide range of what is considered okay. There are a lot of people against euthanasia. Some of the people think that a few types are permissible, while others are not. There is a final group that supports it and that all forms of euthanasia are okay. Euthanasia is defined as a “painless killing of a patient suffering from an incurable and painful disease or in an irreversible coma.” (dictionary.com) In other words it is a good death for a suffering patient, who cannot be cured.

Across the world, especially in the United States, there has been an increase in debates related to the topic of assisted suicide, also known as euthanasia. Many people, specifically in America, consider euthanasia as murder and against their ideals. In contrast, many specialists and other countries, as in Netherlands, believe that the idea of assisted suicide is a gesture of mercy towards terminally ill patients.

Euthanasia is the action of terminating the life of a suffering human, with the assistance of a qualified doctor. It ends the life of someone whose quality of life is low, or involves an extreme amount of pain. Therefore euthanasia is halting the suffering in a humane, dignified way. Death is a very private matter and is something dealt with differently among all people. Many aspects go into making a final decision such as finances, morals, religion, law, and family. These aspects can be used as a pro, but as a con also. Overall, euthanasia should be legal and ultimately be the decision of the patient whether to consent to this action because it is the right of every human to decide for themself whether to die peacefully or live potentially suffering.

Most people do not like to talk or even think about death; much less the topic of ending one’s own life. However, for some, death is a desired alternative to living in agony. Euthanasia has been a topic of debate since antiquity, and both sides stand firm on their beliefs. The right to choose death is illegal in most countries. I believe in people’s freedom to do what they please with their own bodies. The basic right of liberty is what America was founded on. Euthanasia should be a legal option.

First of all, what is euthanasia? It is something that not many people think about until they or a friend or family member is put in a position where they might actually have to consider it. Euthanasia, in the dictionary, simply is: the action of ending someone’s life in a painless way. It seems pretty simple but in reality it is a lot more complicated, not only for the people involved but for the society in general as well.

Do you know what euthanasia is ? Have you ever heard of it ? Well if you have not heard of it or have not heard people talking about it , I’m about to tell you what it is. Euthanasia is assisted suicide. Which means a physician or someone in the medical field helps you die by prescribing a lethal dose of medicine which can either be injected or the patient can drink it. It is morally wrong , the reason I say this is because you are helping someone kill their self. As a physician or anyone in the medical it is against the Hippocratic oath.

Euthanasia is defined as “the act or practice of killing or permitting the death of hopelessly sick or injured individuals in a relatively painless way for reasons of mercy” (Snyder 49). The key word in that definition is mercy; it is a person’s own decision to die due to extreme conditions. Another phrase to describe voluntary euthanasia is physician assisted-suicide. The opinion that people should be allowed to choose when to die is not the opinion of a select few. “Public-opinion polls have consistently shown that approximately sixty percent of the American public favors legal reform allowing physician-assisted death as a last resort to end the suffering of competent patients” (Miller 125). Doctors should be allowed to permit the death of terminally ill individuals because it is people’s right to refuse treatment; safeguards should be in place to ensure everyone involved is protected, and the pain and suffering associated with terminal illness would be greatly reduced.

Since before the thirteenth century, euthanasia has been a prominent debate worldwide and yet we have still not come to a conclusion. With so many factors, such as religion, politics, cost and the public's general opinion, playing a part in this decision, how do we choose whether it is right or wrong? Euthanasia protects a patient's dignity in death, benefits the family of the ill, and could be considered a human right, therefore, I believe euthanasia should be legalised.