Criminal Law: Euthanasia Essay
This essay’s purpose is to discuss to which extent is the label of ‘murderer’
appropriate in cases of euthanasia, and whether or not a defence of
‘compassionate’ killing ought to be legislated for. The essay will divide into
two main parts: in the first one the concept oflabel and its importance is to
be understood into the context of labelling theory, further on, the paper will
argue that ‘murderer’ is too strong a label to pe attached to
euthanasiakillings by discussing murder as an offence and as a concept of
morality alongside with examining some cases of euthanasia with the
purpose of demonstrating that is it different from any other type of killing.
Labelling Theory
One of the key concepts in this essay is indeed what kind of ‘label’ a
person who kills out of mercy is attached to. For the purpose of a deeper
understanding of this concept, a brief history of fair labelling is needed.
James Chalmers and Fiona Leverick discuss in their paper “Fair labelling in
This essay’s purpose is to discuss to which extent is the label of ‘murderer’
appropriate in cases of euthanasia, and whether or not a defence of
‘compassionate’ killing ought to be legislated for. The essay will divide into
two main parts: in the first one the concept oflabel and its importance is to
be understood into the context of labelling theory, further on, the paper will
argue that ‘murderer’ is too strong a label to pe attached to
euthanasiakillings by discussing murder as an offence and as a concept of
morality alongside with examining some cases of euthanasia with the
purpose of demonstrating that is it different from any other type of killing.
Labelling Theory
One of the key concepts in this essay is indeed what kind of ‘label’ a
person who kills out of mercy is attached to. For the purpose of a deeper
understanding of this concept, a brief history of fair labelling is needed.
James Chalmers and Fiona Leverick discuss in their paper “Fair labelling in
