Epicureanism and euthanasia
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 21702264 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Jeremy W Skrzypek (0000-0002-6506-5919, Ohio Dominican University, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2024 |
| Volume | 45 |
| Issue | 6 |
| Pages | 433-446 |
| Publication date | 2024-12-01 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Metamedicine (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0166-2031 • E-ISSN: 1573-1200 |
| Publisher | Springer Science and Business Media LLC (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1007/s11017-024-09684-0 |
| PMID | 39306806 |
| OpenAlex | W4402721452 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 2 |
| References cited | 42 |
If Epicurean arguments for the harmlessness of death are successful, then they also successfully undermine a common justification for physician-assisted suicide, euthanasia, and the termination of hopeless pregnancies that I call the ‘Mercy Intuition', according to which, by ending the life of a suffering loved one for whom there is little to no chance of recovery, one is relieving that person of her suffering, and thus providing a great benefit to her. For, if death is not a harm to the person who dies, then it cannot be a benefit to her either, even in cases of intense and prolonged suffering. Along these lines, in this paper, I defend the claim that death cannot provide a benefit to those who are suffering. I begin by highlighting the Epicurean foundations of the argument, focusing on three main Epicurean arguments for the harmlessness of death and their no-benefit analogues. I then move on to explore several important limitations of the argument, which make available a number of strategies for avoiding its conclusion. Along the way, I respond to each of these avoidance strategies. I conclude that even granting several of its limitations, the argument still poses a serious challenge to the Mercy Intuition
Alternative medicine · Epicureanism · Epistemology · Harm · Intuition · Philosophy of medicine · Political science · Principle of sufficient reason · Skepticism · Ethics in medical practice · Free Will and Agency · Law · Medicine · Philosophical Ethics and Theory · Philosophy · Psychology · Social Psychology
The Philosophy of Death
Well-Being and Death
The Oxford Handbook of Philosophy of Death
Harm to Others
How to Be Dead and Not Care
Epicurus and the harm of death
Responding to the Timing Argument
Death
Killing in the name of
Reviving Concurrentism About Death
Comparative Harm, Creation and Death
Some Puzzles About the Evil of Death
Mortal Harm
Epicurean Equanimity Towards Death
The Symmetry Argument
Less Good but Not Bad
| Citations per year | 2 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2026 - 2026 (1) |
| Highly cited | No |