Discussion of the Sanctity of Life Principle in reference to why it should be abandoned - use of medical examples used to support contention

Advancements in modern medicine have lead to the nature of death being redefined. It raises the question of what we value life for; it's biological attributes or its qualities that enable us to enjoy it? The traditional Sanctity of Life principle (SofLP) is unable to adequately answer any such questions without sounding arbitrary. By defining the doctrine, then applying it to the situation of brain dead patients, I intend to show that when the SofLP …

…makes it valuable. The SofLP is unable to convey this message sufficiently and so we are compelled to abandon it. Bibliography: Burgess, John (2000), "A Matter of Life and Death", Life, Death and Morality Study Guide, The School of Philosophy, Linguistics and Bioethics, Monash University, 2004: 154-160. Singer, P. (1999) Practical Ethics, 2nd edition, United States of America, Cambridge University Press Suber, Peter (1996) "Against the Sanctity of Life" http://www.earlham.edu/~peters/writing/sanctity.htm (accessed 31 March, 2004)