THE DOMINATION OF SCIENCE AND THE MEDICALIZATION OF CONTEMPORARY SOCIETY – AN INTERPRETATION OF THE CURRENT EUROPEAN LEGISLATION REGARDING EUTHANASIA
THE DOMINATION OF SCIENCE AND THE MEDICALIZATION OF CONTEMPORARY SOCIETY – AN INTERPRETATION OF THE CURRENT EUROPEAN LEGISLATION REGARDING EUTHANASIA

Summary/Abstract: Three European countries have legalized euthanasia or assisted suicide in the last two decades: the Netherlands, Belgium and Switzerland. The western world seems to be more and more open towards accepting euthanasia as an option, the freedom of choice being one of the main reasons for which prohibiting such a practice is no longer considered right. But is it truly possible to choose death when suffering is no longer bearable as a free act? Isn’t such an attitude more likely related to a change of mentality, to a cultural environment dominated by science? This paper discusses the problem of the medicalization of society, brought into attention by Michel Foucault, and raises the question regarding the fallibility of science or of the expert, emphasizing the consequences of these matters relevant for the problem of euthanasia.

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