Assisted Suicide
FDENG 101
July 12, 2010 A Time to Die Matthew Donnelly was a young man who fully appreciated the beauty of being alive. He had several friends and a brilliant mind that helped him do priceless research in the field of X-rays. Everything about his life seemed to be normal. He was young, and his hopes for the future were full of excitement and dreams that appeared very likely to come true. However, a day that Matthew had never before anticipated was now reality before his eyes. Shockingly, at age 30, Matthew Donnelly was diagnosed with a brutal case of skin cancer. Suddenly, his mind was bombarded with unanswered questions that seemed to flourish and infuse every beat of his heart with fear. Instead of succumbing to this sea of endless questions, Matthew decided to accept his dreadful reality and fight against a future of pain and unbearable suffering. Not very long after the grim diagnosis, Matthew’s health started to deteriorate exponentially. His body was severely scarred with the effects of an abnormality that so drastically took its toll on him. In a matter of months, Matthew lost his nose, one of his hands, two fingers on his other hand, and even part of his jaw. The sickness caused him to become completely blind, and it was amid utter darkness that he fought each day against constant pain—a kind almost unbearable for any human being. Doctors had told him that he would inevitably die, but this day that at one time seemed to bring in it the fear of a journey unknown was now the escape he so desperately longed for. Having been told that he still might have to wait about a year until he could be set free from his physical suffering, Matthew begged for assistance to die. It was his life, and instead of losing it in pain and excruciating agony, he dreamed of an opportunity to leave mortality peacefully and painlessly. Since assisted suicide was not legal where he lived in, Matthew’s brother handled the situation the “best”
July 12, 2010 A Time to Die Matthew Donnelly was a young man who fully appreciated the beauty of being alive. He had several friends and a brilliant mind that helped him do priceless research in the field of X-rays. Everything about his life seemed to be normal. He was young, and his hopes for the future were full of excitement and dreams that appeared very likely to come true. However, a day that Matthew had never before anticipated was now reality before his eyes. Shockingly, at age 30, Matthew Donnelly was diagnosed with a brutal case of skin cancer. Suddenly, his mind was bombarded with unanswered questions that seemed to flourish and infuse every beat of his heart with fear. Instead of succumbing to this sea of endless questions, Matthew decided to accept his dreadful reality and fight against a future of pain and unbearable suffering. Not very long after the grim diagnosis, Matthew’s health started to deteriorate exponentially. His body was severely scarred with the effects of an abnormality that so drastically took its toll on him. In a matter of months, Matthew lost his nose, one of his hands, two fingers on his other hand, and even part of his jaw. The sickness caused him to become completely blind, and it was amid utter darkness that he fought each day against constant pain—a kind almost unbearable for any human being. Doctors had told him that he would inevitably die, but this day that at one time seemed to bring in it the fear of a journey unknown was now the escape he so desperately longed for. Having been told that he still might have to wait about a year until he could be set free from his physical suffering, Matthew begged for assistance to die. It was his life, and instead of losing it in pain and excruciating agony, he dreamed of an opportunity to leave mortality peacefully and painlessly. Since assisted suicide was not legal where he lived in, Matthew’s brother handled the situation the “best”
Cited: Chapple, A.,and S. Ziebland. “What People Close to Death Say About Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide: A Qualitative Study.” Journal of Medical Ethics 32.12 (2006): 706-710 Gunderson, Martin. “A Right to Suicide Does Not Entail a Right to Assisted Death.” Journal of Medical Ethics 23.1 (1997): 51-54 Zaritszky, John, dir. Documentary. The Suicide Tourist, 2009. Youtube. Web. 6 Jul. 2010. “Euthanasia & Assisted Suicide.” Drexel University.(n.d.). Web. 9 Jul. 2010. "Where It Is Legal in the World." Life. Wisconsin Right to Life, 2010. Web. 11 July 2010. "Euthanasia and Religion." Religion Facts. 2009. Web. 11 July 2010.