MIT OpenCourseWare http ocw mit edu 24 06J STS 006J Bioethics Spring 2009 For information about citing these materials or our Terms of Use visit http ocw mit edu terms What counts as killing There are some clear cases bringing about the death of a patient by lethal injection yes bringing about the death of a patient by choosing not to perform a complex operation no But what about Withdrawing Aid Type Cases Removing a feeding tube Unplugging a respirator Assisted Suicide Type Cases Issuing a lethal prescription Hooking someone up to a suicide machine We would like a general account that would allow us to answer these questions Three kinds of general account have been suggested by philosophers Account 1 I kill a person e g John when I bring about his death by intervening in a self sustaining process that keeps him alive Account 2 I kill John when I bring about his death by moving my body in a certain way and if I had moved my body in most other ways he would have lived Account 3 I kill John when I bring about his death by behaving a certain way and my behavior figures in the most natural explanation of why he died And when is it morally permissible to kill an innocent person Absolutism You should never kill an innocent person Qualified Absolutism You should not kill an innocent person except when you bring about a greater good The Doctrine of Double Effect Intent You should not kill an innocent person unless i By killing him you bring about a greater good and ii Your goal is the greater good not his death The Doctrine of Double Effect Side Effects It is impermissible to kill an innocent person unless i By killing him you bring about a greater good and ii His death is a side effect of your bringing about the greater good Condition ii is satisfied when the greater good would still have come about if he had not died
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