Euthanasia Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Euthanasia - Research Paper Example The concept of Euthanasia or Physician Assisted Suicide is one such idea which has been subjected to many moral and ethical implications. The word euthanasia actually means â€Å"good death† and it is also sometimes referred to as â€Å"mercy killing.† It is a practice whereby the life of an individual is ended with the assistance of physicians to end the agonizing state and misery of a patient. The subject has sparked many controversies globally and many nations across the world have taken the bold step of legalizing this practice. Euthanasia is a practice which is mainly for the good of the patient as it is a method of ending the difficult state that a person lives in. It is mainly a patient selected option and the desire of the patient is given due preference before this practice is carried out (Knox 2005; Manning 1998). Euthanasia is a controversial practice but legalization of this practice is justified owing to the assistance that it brings to the people and owing to the fact that every individual has a right to choose what he considers correct for himself. The subject of Euthanasia is a globally acknowledged issue and there are many countries in the world that have legalized this practice. Netherlands, Switzerland and Belgium are amongst the countries where this practice has been allowed. Switzerland is a country where foreigners are also allowed to come and opt for this practice. There have been cases of people who go to Switzerland to undergo the process of euthanasia. These difficulties can be overcome if the euthanasia is globally legalized. According to statistics, many people from Britain have gone to Switzerland to avail the practice of euthanasia. Jacqueline Herremans who was the President of the Association for the Right to Die with Dignity in Brussels clearly upheld the fact that every individual has a right over his life. They do not need to take permission from the state or their doctors or from other groups for ending their lif e. Thus she argued that the practice of euthanasia should be legal so that people do not have to face difficulties in their personal choices (Knox 2005). The subject of euthanasia has become of increasing interest as the number of patients who are treated in the hospitals for euthanasia related issues have increased. The patients who mainly visit their physicians for euthanasia suffer from lethal and life hampering pathological conditions that greatly alters the living standards and the quality of life of those individuals. These people wish to end their lives with dignity as the pain and suffering in their life is beyond treatment and beyond their control. Furthermore, if this issue is considered with a different perspective, it can be seen that people who are suffering from fatal conditions require excessive monitoring and they may interfere with the treatment of other patients who suffer from curable diseases. Also, the number of people visiting the hospitals has greatly increase d over the years. Thus, if a person consents to and pleads the physician for a dignified death, he should be granted the permission to do so (Quaghebeur et al 2009). There has been strong opposition against the case of euthanasia by religious as well as ethical groups. According to religious groups, euthanasia is a process of killing someone and it is an unforgiveable act owing to the fact that the master of life and death is god. According to these groups, the act of opting for death is actually a challenge to the

Symbolic Interactionism in Police Murder Investigations Essay

Symbolic Interactionism in Police Murder Investigations - Essay Example In this sense, the communicative acts serve as "dramaturgical realizations" exemplifying the cultural identities of the police. (Innes 69) To appreciate Innes' premise, it is imperative to identify the basic constructs of the symbolic interactionist theory. Interactionism is best understood in terms of the existence of an "I" and a "Me" in a social actor2. The "I" manages the impression of the self to produce an identity known as a "Me". When a social actor interacts with another, the initial "Me" generates another "Me" by "imposing on the other a definition of the self". Consequently, the second actor's initial sense of "Me" is influenced by his interaction with the first actor. In this sense, each actor manages the image of the self being projected while at the same time imposing symbolic meanings on others. (Wilfrid Laurier University) Central to this paradigm is the social actor's concept of self. Hester and Eglin describe how the self is conceptualized - both as a process and as an object. As a process, the self is capable of communicating to itself from the standpoint of a "generalized other", producing situational and contextual responses to varying situations and environments. Through "self-interaction", the social actor produces self-indications by defining the context of the situation and then judging the course of action or response appropriate to the defined situation. Meanwhile, self as an object pertains to a social actor's self-image, his understanding of who and what he is. The social actor judges himself from the perspective of a "generalized other" and thus determines his roles and functions. (Hester and Eglin 92) In exploring the symbolic constructions of homicide investigations, Innes utilizes this interactionist perspective by examining how police officers create and interpret meanings through various communicative acts. Innes posits that the police officer as a social actor acts towards situations in terms of the meanings he interprets from them. These meanings are derived through social interaction and depend on a process of self interpretation. Innes sets this framework against the back drop of the "police occupational culture", which has been imposed by prevailing media and public perceptions about the nature of police work. In this context, the police officer, through his self-impressions combined with the labels imposed upon him by prevalent public views, sees himself as an agent of social order. The police officer is socialized into an "occupational role", and thus "develops an occupational identity based on the role's demands, and contributes to the maintenance or modification of this character." (Vincent 2) This "occupational role" is evidenced by organizational communications, which in turn serve to construct and maintain a symbolic representation of the organization's roles and functions. (Innes 71) A major component of this "occupational culture" is the "moral ambiguity" of policing. Interactionism asserts that