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Natural Law Theory Of Euthanasia And Assisted Suicide

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Natural Law Theory Of Euthanasia And Assisted Suicide
The natural law theory states that everything is created for a particular function and fulfilling this is the good which everything should aim for. The theory of natural law was put forward by Aristotle but championed by Aquinas. There are four forms of euthanasia - active, voluntary, non-voluntary and involuntary. Euthanasia is prohibited by natural law due to the precept of preserving life. It is my contention that natural law does not in fact provide the best approach to the issue of euthanasia.

Followers of natural law would argue that euthanasia is wrong. Euthanasia deliberately interferes with the natural process of dying, making it morally wrong natural law followers. Natural law however can be seen to not be the best approach to the …show more content…
According to this, we all know that taking life is wrong. Therefore, its wrong to take our own life or ask others to do it for us. We should allow nature to take its course and let death occur in its own time. It is wrong to intervene with drugs or treatment that could alleviate pain or reduce suffering.

Natural law advocates the use of our God given right reason to make ethical judgements. Aquinas believed that right reason involved using the precepts to make rights moral decisions, which would be broken by voluntary euthanasia. This would break the primary precept of ‘preservation of life’ because human life is sacred and must be protected.

In addition to this, there is the issue of ‘Quality of Life’. As reason can be seen as a central part of this ethical framework, it can be credibly referred to as universal: as it can be accessed by anyone with the capability to use reason. However, Karl Barth would definitely disagree with this as he believes reason is fallible as, in his opinion, we should rely on divine revelation in scripture for right and …show more content…
The case of Tony Bland, severely injured after the Hillsborough disaster of 1989, is an important one when looking at euthanasia. Bland was left on life support machines, in a coma although able to feed and breathe. This case resulted in his life support machine being switched off under the terms that the doctor could not be expected to preserve his life at all costs. This case supports euthanasia as it shows that the doctor’s time and government’s money can be used elsewhere where it can actually be of a benefit.

Jeremy Bentham devised utilitarianism which strives for the greatest good for the greatest number. It can be argued that terminating someone’s life might be the greatest good as their loved ones no longer have to see the patient suffer. Negative utilitarianism attempts to eliminate pain altogether. Although this is good in theory, it means that any sort of pain we did come across could be used as an excuse for
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