Archives of Hellenic Medicine

Last update:

31-May-2016

Arch Hellen Med, 33(Supplement 1), 2016, 30-34

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Philosophers' answer:
Four possible answers: when time has come; no wish to live anymore; not worth living; body cannot sustain life

A. Kerasidou
The Ethox Centre, Nuffield Deparmtent of Population Health, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK

What does the question "when should a person die?" actually mean? How the verb 'should' ought to be understood in this context? In this presentation I start by focusing on the term 'should'. I argue that the verb 'should' can be understood as signifying necessity (logical or natural) or obligation. Based on this primary analysis, I go on to propose four different answers to the question "when should a person die?": 1) When his/her time has come; 2) when he/she does not wish to live anymore; 3) when his/her life is not worth living; and, 4) when the body cannot sustain life anymore.

Key words: Euthanasia, Good death, Sustainable life, Worth living, When should we die (WSWD), Wish to live.