Euthanasia, also referred to as assisted suicide, is the painless killing of a person who has an incurable illness of disease. There are many people who are for this practice and many others who are against it. In the episode “San Junipero” in the show Black Mirror, Yorki is a quadriplegic that is about to go through with the process of euthanasia and is going to stay in San Junipero forever. She needs to be married so that her spouse can sign off on her doing this because she cannot move or speak.

There are many arguments on the side of euthanasia. The number one argument is that if someone has an illness that leaves them in excruciating pain, they deserve the right to end their lives. There is also an argument that we should let people die with dignity, instead of having peoples loves ones seeing them deteriorate before their eyes. Euthanasia would free up funds that are used on medical supplies and equipment on people that are in long term comas or on the verge of death. People want the freedom to choose whether or not they want to continue living in this world.

With a list of pros also comes with a list of cons. The arguments against euthanasia are that there could be alternative treatments and medicines that could be used on people with an illness and euthanasia doesn’t give them the opportunity to try these and possibly live. Some people say that it devalues human lives and that it would go against the Hippocratic Oath that doctors take vowing not to harm patients in any way or form. There are also religious questions that it raises.

Different civilizations throughout the years have had different views on euthanasia. In ancient Greece and Rome, they tended to agree with euthanasia though there were no laws passed on the subject. They had the Hippocratic Oath in that time that refrained doctors from administering a deadly drug to a patient even if they asked for it, but very few doctors in this time actually followed the oath.

During the middle ages, they were against euthanasia in Europe. During this time, the Catholic Church taught people that if you were to commit suicide, you would end up in hell because of all the suicides at this time, especially when the black plague broke out. Since many people during this time were very religious, this reached a lot of people and affected a lot of decisions, although some people still decided that it would be best if they ended their lives and go against the Catholic Church.

Between the 17th century and the 19th century, there were many different opinions regarding euthanasia. In the 17th century, the American colonies prohibit assisted suicide. During the Renaissance and the Reformation in Europe, people started to the Catholic Church and their stance on euthanasia. In the mid-1900s, the World Medical Association condemned euthanasia under any circumstances. Shortly after, groups start petitioning for the right to euthanasia and a few decades later, eight American states have “Right to Die” Bills. In the late 20th century, societies form that are for euthanasia but no laws get passed to make it legal. To this day, euthanasia is only legal in four states in America and three countries in Europe.

In the end, Yorki decides to end her life by assisted suicide and live in San Junipero for the rest of time, or until she decides to end her life for good. There are many reasons to have euthanasia and many reasons to stay away from it, but in the end it all comes down to what the person who is dying thinks.
