Euthanasia: A German View

Abstract

At the beginning of the twentieth century, the intellectual climate was dominated by social Darwinism, and there was some rather controversial discussion on the legal and ethical aspects of euthanasia in Germany. Arguing for a “right to die,” people talked in terms of a “dignified death,” “the senselessness of incurable suffering,” and the overall cost to society at large. However, the change in criminal legislation that was sought was not brought about at that time. Instead, many of the arguments were abused 20 years later, and finally employed to justify the terrible extermination of so-called unworthy lives during the Third Reich. Since the Second World War there has been a remarkable reluctance to renew this discussion. Not until recently, with the development of new technical appliances and medical approaches enabling man to prolong lives artificially and to transplant human organs, has legal concern again focused on the question of euthanasia. New scientific insights into the process of dying have compelled the lawyers to revise the long-standing legal definition of death. The varying availability and unequal application of lifeprolonging treatment call for a scrutiny of the doctor’s professional duties towards his dying patient. As it has been put by a German law professor: “Death is too important to be left to the medical profession alone.”