Marc Keller
Title
Dr. phil.
Last Name
Keller
First name
Marc
Email
marc.keller@unisg.ch
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Item type:Publication, Language Matters: The Semantics and Politics of “Assisted Dying”(Wiley, 2024-11-02); ; ; This essay examines the impact of linguistic choices on the perception and regulation of assisted dying, particularly in Canada. It argues that euphemistic terms like “medical assistance in dying” and its acronym, “MAID,” serve to normalize the practice, potentially obscuring its moral gravity. This contrasts with what is seen in Belgium and the Netherlands, where terms like “euthanasia” are used, as well as in France and the United Kingdom, where terminology remains divisive and contested. By tracing the evolution of these terms and what they reveal about different cultural and legal approaches, this essay sheds light on the politics of language in end-of-life discourses. It suggests that the shift toward euphemistic language reflects a broader discomfort with death that can shape public attitudes and legal frameworks. It calls for a more transparent, philosophically grounded approach to terminology and suggests that continued debate about semantics is necessary to capture the complexities and ethical significance of assisted dying.Type:journal articleJournal:Hastings Center ReportVolume:54Issue:5Scopus© Citations 3 - Some of the metrics are blocked by yourconsent settings
Item type:Publication, End-of-Life Stories Matter(2024-10-18); ; ; Session Description Assisted dying has been legal in Québec since 2015, in Canada since 2016, and its provision is bound up with contemporaneous understandings of the role and remit of palliative care. Led by four members of Assisted Lab – an academic, nonpartisan research lab concerned with patient stories of assisted dying – this interactive workshop will explore in detail the relationship between palliative care and assisted dying. With a focus on stories told by patients in blogs, films, and audio recordings, this workshop aims to clarify the synergies and tensions between palliative care and assisted dying provision in Canada. It will therefore begin with short presentations discussing international variants of this relationship, including in Switzerland, Belgium, the Netherlands, and France. The second part of the workshop will consist of discussions, in breakout groups, of fragments of patient stories that deal with the assisted dying-palliative care relationship in Canada and abroad. Each group will be led by a member of Assisted Lab (the ideal participant size is therefore 20 people). The workshop will conclude with each group presenting potentially generalizable principles contained in their respective patient story, and a general discussion of these principles. With a view to maximizing audience participation and debate, the final part of the workshop will seek out the responses of palliative care and other actors to the patient stories. Session Learning Objectives Sharpen narrative analysis skills to better understand the relationship between palliative care and assisted dying in Canada and in Québec Gain an understanding of different cultural models of that relationship, as well as the concrete historical circumstances and personalities that shaped it in different national contexts Develop communication skills related to discussing merits and drawbacks of medical assistance in dying with people who hold different opinionsType:conference contribution