‘Alive by default’ : An exploration of Velleman’s unfair burdens argument against state sanctioned euthanasia

Journal article


Symons, Xavier and Chua, Reginald. (2020). ‘Alive by default’ : An exploration of Velleman’s unfair burdens argument against state sanctioned euthanasia. Bioethics. 34(3), pp. 288-294. https://doi.org/10.1111/bioe.12677
AuthorsSymons, Xavier and Chua, Reginald
Abstract

In this article we critically evaluate an argument against state-sanctioned euthanasia made by David Velleman in his 1992 paper ‘Against the right to die’. In that article, Velleman argues that legalizing euthanasia is morally problematic as it will deprive eligible patients of the opportunity of staying ‘alive by default’. That is to say, those patients who are rendered eligible for euthanasia as a result of legislative reform will face the burden of having to justify their continued existence to their epistemic peers if they are to be perceived as ‘reasonable’. We discuss potential criticisms that could be made of the argument, and consider how a defender of the view might respond. Velleman’s argument is particularly interesting as it is a consequentialist argument against state-sanctioned euthanasia, challenging the many consequentialist arguments that have been made in favour of legalizing the procedure. We conclude by suggesting that further research on the question of unfair burdens is important to adequately evaluating the potential harms of legalizing euthanasia for patients at the end of life.

Keywordseuthanasia; Kantianism; rational suicide; utilitarianism; vulnerability
Year2020
JournalBioethics
Journal citation34 (3), pp. 288-294
PublisherBlackwell Publishing Ltd
ISSN0269-9702
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)https://doi.org/10.1111/bioe.12677
Scopus EID2-s2.0-85073959639
Research or scholarlyResearch
Page range288-294
Publisher's version
License
All rights reserved
File Access Level
Controlled
Output statusPublished
Publication dates
Online02 Oct 2019
Publication process dates
Accepted13 Aug 2019
Deposited26 Jul 2021
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