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Chaunce M. Shrewsbury
Mr. Jorgensen
Writing 1010 - 064
Aug. 6, 2015
Death with Dignity in the Face of Fortitude and Perseverance
American society has grown accustom to an expeditious world; from fast food chains, to
cell phones with instant messaging - forget about writing a letter - we beg for speed. We have
autocorrect to fix our spelling, calculators to do our math and doctors to prescribe us pills for
every mental ill - forget seeing the therapist - we beg for speed. Through improving these tools,
making them quicker, easier and compact weve become comfortable with nothing less than
instant gratification; and, when things are out-of-date or are no longer useful, they are thrown
away. We have become a throw-away culture.
The aforementioned aspects not only grant us instant gratification, but a sense of control
over our world. We're able to capture the moment, order pizza, purchase groceries online. The
sense of control hasn't ended at the tech in our hands; transhumanism (a movement to increase
human ability intellectually, physically and psychologically through integrated technology) is
quickly becoming a reality with exponential technological advances. Through genetic
manipulation we harness the ability to control our childrens abilities, features and traits they'll
be granted with at birth. We have come to say how and when our children will be born we beg
for control.
Amidst the ever growing throw-away culture of instant gratification and control is an
increasingly popular movement for the 'right-to-die'. It fights for the right of individuals to be
able to say when to call it quits, that is, to end their life; it fights for ultimate control. Unlike

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suicide though, it doesnt seek for the right to die solely by ones own hand, but to be assisted by
a prescribed medicine, ergo, the more popular title of the practice, assisted suicide. Much of the
'right-to-die' movement has aggressively attempted to change the title 'assisted suicide' to
something more pleasant to the ears such as 'aid-in-dying' (a political ploy in moralizing the
act), however, 'assisted suicide' has stuck with many.
Following the legalization in five states and the controversial case of Brittany Maynard's
opted for death on Nov. 1 2014 (Schabner), the subject has been heavily debated. The premise is
whether or not someone has a right to die, that is, a moral claim. So, we must ask, do we have a
claim on death? No. It can come at any moment in a number of ways. When someone tells me
that we should have a right to die, I respond similarly to Fr. Frank Pavone, National Director of
Priests for Life - "Don't worry -- you won't miss out on it!" (Pavone)
Unlike debate about physically occurring events such as global warming, assisted
suicide can't be argued for or against based on numerical values; unfortunately, we cant make a
as a sociological statistic based on personal experience either. The question is of morality - not
just for the individual whom has opted for the early death, but for those responsible for the
prescribed drugs.
In places where "death-by-dignity" laws have been passed, the parties dealing the drugs
are the person's doctor and then pharmacist. The idea of death-dealing 'medication' takes
medicine in a different direction than ever before. Until recently, the goal of doctors and
pharmacists has been to preserve or better life. Upon gaining a doctor's license, one must take the
Hippocratic Oath. Although the Oath has changed over the years, the modern version, written in
1964 by Louis Lasagna, Academic Dean of the School of Medicine at Tufts University (and still
used in many medical schools) states they must "...apply, for the benefit of the sick, all measures

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which are required, avoiding those twin traps of overtreatment and therapeutic nihilism." And
"Above all... must not play at God." (Lasagna)
Webster's Dictionary defines medicine as, "...the science that deals with preventing,
curing, and treating disease." (Webster's Dictionary, 2015) A doctor who professes to practice
medicine should not be required to provide something so contradictory to his/her oath and
practice. The American Medical Association states in its code of ethics that, "Physician-assisted
suicide is fundamentally incompatible with the physicians role as healer... and pose[s] serious
societal risks."(Physician-Assisted Suicide) As an EMT, my goal is to preserve life until the last
moment. Do we continue to value life and see its worth until that last breath or do we allow life
to become part of our throw-away culture, only putting up with it when it is convenient and
suffer free? We crave for this convenient control.
Preventative prolonged suffering is the loudest argument from the "right-to-die" crowd.
They feel that individuals are treated as having less dignity if we encourage them to persevere
and fight for life, living with their loved ones. We have an obligation to reduce suffering as much
as possible within society, however, life without suffering is an impossibility. If we are to argue
that suffering is a sufficient reason to allow one to choose death, it begs the question of how
much suffering one must endure before they are allowed to make the decision.
Would a teenager who is undergoing a divorce in the family, a personal break up, failing
grades, or being bullied, fall under the criteria? Most would say no, but what if he thought that it
was too much to deal with? Do we tell our teenage child, young adult, or college to go through
with their plan? Should we assist them? Or do we get them immediate help? There are suicide
hotlines for a reason. With encouraging assisted suicide due to suffering, we allow a
rationalization of suicide. Perseverance is becoming a less valued principle within our society.

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Once we as a society conclude that things can get too rough to continue and that it's okay to call
it quits, to control the outcome, then we can expect these types of societal ills.
Suffering is often claimed to sometimes be too great to manage, however, this is
generally a myth. According to a May 1994 study conducted by the New York State Task Force
on Life and Law, "Taken together, modern pain relief techniques can alleviate pain in all but
extremely rare cases." (When Death is Sought, 40) We've come a long way in managing pain and
alleviating suffering over the last 21 years.
Assisted suicide laws require that a patient be 18 years old, a resident of a participating
state, capable of making and communicating health decisions for his/her self and diagnosed with
an illness that will kill them within six months. (Death with Dignity: the Laws & How to Access
Them) If suffering is a criteria for an individual's decision, how do we handle situations where an
individual is obviously suffering a great deal but cannot make decisions, such as those with
Alzheimer's? Whereas 'the right-to-die' movement asserts that being allowed to choose death
preserves dignity, there is no preservation of dignity if someone else makes that choice for you.
Dignity; 'death with dignity' is a continuous claim by those whom would presume that
deciding to clock out early is dignifying. I agree that we should die with dignity. The terminally
ill can die with dignity without 'assisted suicide' - if we maintain that life has worth until the last
day. To say otherwise, is a large judgment on our part. To suggest that one has nothing to offer
the world is a judgment that we can't make. To offer death when one is sick shows a lack of
caring and compassion. It's a reduction of dignity in people. Dignity exists even in illness.
While at times a doctor's predicated time of death may be correct, it is often impossible to
provide an accurate prognosis. In a well known phenomenon called the placebo effect many
patients have shown improvement believing that they are receiving a treatment or being given

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hope to live. In an article published by Medicinenet, Amy Norton, a HealthDay reporter states
that during a study involving patients with Parkinson's, two groups were injected with saline.
One group was told that it was a more expensive treatment than the other. Norton states that, "On
average, patients had bigger short-term improvements in symptoms like tremor and muscle
stiffness when they were told they were getting the costlier of two drugs." (Norton)
The way we look at things can have an effect on the outcome of a disease, how much
longer we are able to live, or the quality of life. Doctors have repeatedly said that attitude and
perseverance go a long way in treatment. When people are ready to go, they often fade much
more quickly. I've witnesses this in family elders. Giving people the option to go at one's own
time removes fortitude and perseverance in our society - it gives them a quick way out.
Brittany Maynard, 29, after being diagnosed with severe brain cancer and given six
months to live, decided that perseverance wasn't for her. She moved to a state that would allow
her to "die with dignity", so that she could opt out on her own terms. She commented that "I
quickly decided that death with dignity was the best option for me and my family." (Maynard)
She spent the rest of her life encouraging others to have the right to do so. Giving Brittany and
others a pill to kill him/herself with treats a problem instead of treating the person with true
compassion and dignity, suffering with them in love, support and companionship.
Contrast Brittany Maynard's story with Heather Knies. Heather Knies, 24, was diagnosed
with the same disease as Brittany, stage 4 glioblastoma. Given six months to live, she stated,
"The mind is so much more powerful than anyone can imagine.. People believe that when they
get cancer, it will kill them. But I never once thought that." (James 1) She stunned the doctors
through her recovery and today, six years later, she is married with a beautiful daughter. The

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struggle for life was real and she did not give up. She was not tempted to throw it away, but now,
she thanks God everyday for the gift of life. She recognized a claim on death as false control.
Maggie Karner, 51, tells her story in a video on Youtube. Her story tells of her father who
became a quadriplegic. She wondered as a young woman how he would exist without his arms
and his legs, but he got through it gracefully. She and her sisters learned a lot about valuing
every moment in life despite the horrible circumstances. He showed her how to live and how to
die with grace and dignity. Maggie says this about the remainder of her life - "My Brain may be
cancerous, and I don't know how much longer I have. But I still have a lot to contribute to
society as a strong woman, wife and mother: And my family can daily learn the value of caring
for me in my last days with compassion and dignity." (Karmer)
Maggie Karmer's bares witness to the importance of life in these final moments.
Perseverance and Fortitude are valuable principles. While grandma may not feel like living
anymore, the love and sharing of the last moments of life are priceless, memorable and teach
valuable lessons.Within the arguments for and against assisted suicide, one teaches patience,
perseverance and tenacity, while the other teaches that you can and should take leave of your
problems. There is no such thing as a useless life.
Jim Valvano, Basketball Coach, in his famous speech at the Espy's in 1993 says it all,
"don't give up, don't ever give up""Cancer can take away all my physical ability. It cannot touch
my mind; it cannot touch my heart; and it cannot touch my soul. And those three things are going
to carry on forever." (Valvano) He saw the value of his life and the impact it had on others in his
last moments. These values are ones that we must instill in the next generation; dignity with
every breath.