Quality of life

Human life has to process certain attributes in order to have value.

📎 A way of weighing the extrinsic experience of life, that effects of justifies whether or not it is worth continuing life.

Biblical support

1. God created humans to have dominion and so dignity sometimes this dignity comes from knowing when to end life (Genesis 1:28),
2. Jesus came so that people could have life "in all its fullness" John 10:10: this means life should not be burdensome, but rather we should have a quality of life. If someone has no quality of life, then euthanasia could be a good option.

Applied to natural law

• Natural law ethicists would reject the quality of life argument.
• If people choose to reject this and support the quality of life argument, they consider this has taken place for the following reasons:

3. It is seen as an apparent good: whereby the person believes they are doing a compassionate thing by thinking about the quality of life.
4. The Law of Double Effect: The double effect argument involves making a distinction between foreseeing what will happen and actually intending it to happen.

Applied to situation ethics

His 'Indicators of human hood' are:

5. self-awareness, self-control
6. sense of future
7. sense of past
8. capacity to relate to others
9. concern for others
10. communication
11. Curiosity If they don't have any of these indicators then we should do the most loving thing.

When you apply the six propositions and the four working principles explain why in your chosen case study the indicator is missing, leading to euthanasia being a loving act.

The six propositions

1. Love is the only thing that is intrinsically good individual actions by themselves are not innately good or evil. In the case of quality of life, as life is valued and has dignity this should be put before all else.
2. Love is the ruling norm in ethical decision-making and replaces all laws In the case of quality of life, as life is valued and has dignity this should be put before all else, within each situation the only consideration should be doing the most loving thing for that individual based on their life.
3. Love and justice are the same: In the case of quality of life, as life is valued and has dignity this should be the only consideration should be doing the most loving thing when this is done justice will be served.
4. Love wills the neighbor's good regardless of whether the neighbor is liked or not. In the case of quality of life, solely the situation that the individual finds themself in should be considered, as all life has equal value so in each case the quality of an individual life should be sought.
5. Love is the goal or end of the act and that justifies any means to achieve that goal. In the case of quality of life making decisions based on showing love to each person based on their life circumstances, will naturally lead to individual decisions being made showing compassion in each case.
6. Love decides on each situation as it arises without a set of laws to guide it. In the case of quality of life, it allows for each case to be considered on its own merits without the limitation of legalist viewpoints as found in the sanctity of life arguments.

The four working principles

Pragmatism: It is based on experience rather than on theory, this is an ethics that is concerned with how moral views might play out in each real-life situation. In the case of quality of life it allows for a personalised decision to be made, ensuring all action taken would show true respect for the dignity of life. Relativism: it is based on making the absolute laws of Christian ethics relative as there should be no absolute and fixed view of the right thing to do. In the case of quality of life, each case is considered on its own merits, leading to various outcomes depending on each person's medical need. Positivism: it begins with belief in the reality and importance of love, an acceptance of agape through faith is the most important thing when making a moral decision. In the case of quality of life, we have to make the right decision for the person involved showing love and believing in faith that it is the correct decision even if it appears to go against biblical principles of sanctity of life. Personalism: persons, not laws are at the center of situation ethics human beings and their concerns are at the center of morality. In the case of quality of life, this approach allows us to decide, by putting the person at the center of each and every choice made.

💡 Scholarly support John Locke "The value of life depends on a person's ability to have desires and preferences and those that do not have this are not alive, so therefore euthanasia is the right thing to do." Peter Singer "A life of physical suffering, unredeemed by any form of pleasure or by a minimal level of self-consciousness, is not worth living."

Strengths of the quality of life application to Euthanasia:

• It prevents people from living a life of suffering
• Euthanasia allows people to end their life in dignity.
• Quality of life acknowledges that the suffering people experience will differ between every situation so a case by case analysis needs to be taken on.

Weaknesses of the quality of life application to Euthanasia:

• Slippery slope argument: whilst the argument has good intentions, it can become very dangerous.
• Defining the value of someone's life by what they can achieve, can become very dangerous. Does this mean the life of disabled people is less valuable than others?
• Defining someone's value by their quality can lead to peoples lives being involuntarily taken from them.
• Under the Sanctity of life principle, all life is valued the same and so ensures that everyone's life is respected.