The moral issues involved in doctors assisting patients to die with dignity are of absolutely central concern to the medical profession, ethicists, and the public at large. The debate is fueled by cases that extend way beyond passive euthanasia to the active consideration of killing by physicians. The need for a sophisticated but lucid exposition of the two sides of the argument is now urgent. This book supplies that need. Two prominent philosophers, Gerald Dworkin and R. G. Frey argue that in certain circumstances it is morally and should be legally permissible for physicians to provide the knowledge and means by which patients can take their lives. One of the best-known ethicists in the US (author of Lying: Moral Choice in Public and Private) Sissela Bok argues that the legalization of euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide would entail grave risks and would in no way deal adequately with the needs of those at the end of their lives, least of all in societies without health insurance available to all. All the moral and factual issues relevant to this controversy are explored. The book will thus enable readers to begin to decide for themselves how to confront a decision that we are all likely to face at some point in our lives.
Reviews
"The public debate on euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide will go on for many years. It is one of the most profound debates in American society now. The authors of these elegant essays for and against euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide are not only clear and compelling thinkers, but they bring to the subject an important set of sensibilities and perspectives. This will be an especially fine exchange for those trying to get a clear sense of the nature of the issues at stake." Daniel Callahan, The Hastings Center "This book did a good job of educating the reader on both sides of the debate on PAS and AVE. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in learning more about these issues." Ethics and Medicine
