LETTING GO

Letting Go

Letting Go

Introduction

The loss of life or the fact of death has always been a concern for man, reflected throughout history in all cultural fields in the literature, philosophy, religions of the peoples or the law itself. Similarly it has been everything that is linked to death of the subject or the effects produced on the affected or the other: the fear, pain or suffering, and so on.

The extraordinary progress in recent decades has occurred in science in general and particularly in the health sciences have had great impact on society and its system of values. Today, it is possible to cure diseases that a few years ago were not curable, the average age in our country is very high, the significant progress in lowering infant and neonatal mortality, delayed time of death by technical means very sophisticated, and so on. This makes comeback and revive the debate on controversial issues for society, where pride of place euthanasia. If man has not been able to avoid the reality of death as a natural and inevitable, much less do it when it has been produced by an act or omission by the holder of the living or the assistance of a third party, that suicide is a complex phenomenon on one hand, it is an individual phenomenon and private human being and another has a large family and social impact. However, his presentation is universal and since the origin of mankind (Jary & Jary, 1991).

Throughout history has tried to regulate death voluntarily produced (by the subject right holder or by others), by written policy or not, remain the same as a reflection of the views prevailing in each period, whether religious, philosophical, scientific or other nature. In traditional Western culture conserve life has been regarded as a moral ...