Utilitarians vs. Kant on Euthanasia Essay - 1875 Words

Philosophy 1610 22 April 2013 Euthanasia or Just Plain Murder: The Mercy Death/Killing Debate Euthanasia is the practice of ending a life in order to release an individual from unbearable suffering or an incurable disease. Euthanasia the word is derived from Ancient Greek, Eu meaning â€Å"good† and Thantos meaning â€Å"Death† and when combined the term means â€Å"Good Death†. Mercy Death by definition is taking a direct action to terminate a person’s life because the person has requested to do so. This also includes physician assisted suicide, not to be confused with suicide which is the taking of one’s life by one’s own hand without assistance. Mercy Killing is also a term used and it refers to someone taking a direct action to terminate a†¦show more content†¦Since we’ve established that Kant is strongly against euthanasia; at least active euthanasia. We can now discuss the arguments of Thiroux in relativity to this debate. Active euthanasia, it is in direct violation of the value of life principle. This means th at the involvement of taking a life usually means killing an innocent person. This is unlike the defense of an innocent, war or capital punishment. It can also be open to the domino argument, which essentially argues if human beings allow one thing to be declared legal or moral; this could cause a multitude of others bad things to follow. The church also have the argument over religious practices and means that God gave us life as a gift, so why should we have the right to take it away again? The religious aspect has many different reasons for being against euthanasia but all religions stem from the belief of a higher power or being giving us the gift of life. There are also other available options as in possibly of finding a cure or using hospice as an alternative. So in result Immanuel Kant has his own ethical theory and arguments revolving around the taking of one’s life via euthanasia, therefore many arguments or debates can be given to defend the right not to take anothe r individuals life based on one’s own ethical views. A second ethical theory that can be raised is what stance does Utilitarianism takes on the debate of euthanasia. A brief definition of Utilitarianism isShow MoreRelatedUtilitarianism Vs. Kantian Theory1100 Words   |  5 PagesMelanie Dolechek 3/30/17 PHI Essay #2 Utilitarianism vs Kantian Theory Morality is a complex subject and ethical dilemmas yield differing opinions and theories that have manifested through time by intelligent philosophers. There were two influential philosophers’ names Jeremy Bentham and Immanuel Kant, who formed differing theories, in an attempt to set a uniform approach to ethical dilemmas and morality. Bentham was a firm supporter of Utilitarian theory; which focuses on overall happiness and consequencesRead MoreAssisted Suicide, Morally Wrong or Your Right?2852 Words   |  12 Pagesphysician assisted suicide, assisted suicide and euthanasia. Physician assisted suicide is when a physician intentionally gives the patient the method of suicide, such as pills. Assisted suicide involves a layperson or a non-physician who is equipping the patient with the means to kill themselves. Euthanasia is when the person is directly killed by a physician or a layperson; euthanasia can be voluntary, involuntary or non-voluntary. Voluntary euthanasia is a t the patients request, involuntary is against