Preview

Derek Parfit's Concept Of Identity

Better Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1122 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Derek Parfit's Concept Of Identity
Margo is a patient suffering from Alzheimer’s disease who has recently contracted pneumonia. While treatment will allow her to live another five years, the progression of the disease will lead to rapid death. Further complicating the situation, Margo has written a will five year prior stating that doctors withhold treatment once the severity of the Alzheimer’s disease intensifies. In his integrity view, the philosopher Ronald Dworkin argues that autonomy derives its value from its capacity to protect one’s values, interests, and beliefs view. He asserts that due to the Alzheimer’s disease, Margo has lost her “sense of self” (Campbell, 1994) and the value in her autonomy; however, through the application of Derek Parfit’s conception of changing …show more content…
Derek Parfit’s conception of identity, however, provides a different perspective. Parfit draws a distinction between survival and identity. While Margo could have physically survived to today, her identity would have undergone significant changes. In fact, with five years being a long duration, small changes in her personality, beliefs, and views could have generated a new identity. Neuroanatomy reflects this as new connections constantly formed in the cortex through new experiences and thoughts. Thus, while it may appear that Margo has lost her identity, it could potentially be that the current Margo is simply a distinct identity from the Margo five years ago. While there are some shared interests, values, and personalities – some degree of “psychological connectedness” – such similarities could be minimal (Parfit, 1971). If this is indeed true, while Margo’s decisions may appear erratic, such observations could simply reflect changes in Margo’s identity not her loss of identity, and thus, there would be value in respecting the current Margo’s autonomy and the set of values it protects. In fact, similar changes are seen in borderline personality disorder patients who undergo rapid changes in mood, behavior, and thought (Kernberg & Michels, 2009) – elements that underlies one’s personality and identity. Yet, few would claim …show more content…
The pneumonia treatment will allow Margo to live another five years. Because individual life is often held precious, such life-saving procedure might appear beneficial. In fact, considering Margo’s positive relationship with the staff at the nursing home, it could potentially appear that Margo would enjoy the remainder of her life. It is, however, important to remember that the Alzheimer’s disease would progressively worsen Margo’s condition over the next five years. Research indicates that up to 50% of Alzheimer’s disease patients suffer from depression (Lyketsos & Olin, 2002). Moreover, over time, Margo will face difficulty with simply tasks such as speaking and eating (Neugroschl & Wang, 2011). Under such condition, it is difficult to see how Margo would “enjoy” the remainder of her life. The five years could potentially be a burden full of suffering and pain while treating pneumonia with morphine could end her life peacefully. It could be argued that Margo should first be given the treatment, and if she later demands euthanasia, her wishes can then be granted. The problem, however, remains in that the treatment will not restore her autonomy. In the case of burnt victims who demand euthanasia, doctors will often save these individuals to allow them to ponder over their decision more thoroughly (Caplan, 2008). The pneumonia treatment,

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    In Charles Leadbeater’s article “The Disremembered,” he explains what makes up one’s identity. His way of doing so is through the struggle of dementia patients and their caregivers. He begins by defining Dementia and giving examples of struggles they would have, such as not remembering their loved ones or repeating simple tasks, like putting the milk in the refrigerator, because simply forgot they have already used it (2). Next, Leadbeater talks of the way society splits up patients and caregivers, into groups of good memory and bad memory. He claims that memory-based learning is the go to way to treat and heal dementia patients, but Leadbeater also expresses a different way for the cure (4-5).…

    • 274 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Best Essays

    This essay will analyse the ethical principles and code of practice in relation to the case study of Peter, a man suffering from Alzheimer’s disease and will suggest a course of action for Peter’s situation based upon the application of these principles and the code. It will do this by examining the term ‘ethics’ and will focus on four ethical principles found to be relative to the kinds of ethical issues and challenges met within health and social care settings, these will be applied to the case study. Peter’s situation is that of a man, who, at the request of his family, unhappily (but apparently necessarily), moved to Parkside Manor, a small residential care home. Of late Peter’s condition of Alzheimer’s disease has advanced and he has become progressively uninhibited. His behaviour has caused the staff to question Peter’s placement at the care home, as some of the other residents are beginning to become troubled and distressed by his behaviour. Some staff feel that with the number of residents needing attention, Peter’s needs require more time than they have to give. However Peter’s family are resolute in their decision for him to remain at Parkside.…

    • 2722 Words
    • 11 Pages
    Best Essays
  • Better Essays

    Dudley Clendinen, editorial writer and author, vividly uses his personal experience with Lou Gehrig’s disease in his article “The Good Short Life”: to inform readers of the painful symptoms that accompany the disease and in an attempt to justify his wish to prematurely end his life. He does not view death as end, but, like his battle with alcoholism, simply as another hurdle to overcome (Clendinen). Suffering from a disease that has no significant treatment or cure he states, “If I let this run the whole course, with all the human, medical, technological and loving support I will start to need just months from now, it will leave me, in 5 or 8 or 12 or more years, a conscious but motionless, mute, withered, incontinent mummy of my former self” (Clendinen) (see fig. 1). Rather than living longer through continuously deteriorating health and life quality, as he has witnessed his cousin and Mother suffer through, Clendinen prefers to enjoy “the good short life”. Although a patient near death may wish to end his or her life and the court acknowledges the practice, he or she may not be assured a peaceful passage.…

    • 878 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    There are two factors that have contributed to euthanasia’s distinction with how the world is today. They are both an increasing sense of self-determinism and medical revolution that have the potential of prolonging human life (Michigan, 2006). People think that just because there are things like hospice and medication that euthanasia shouldn’t even be an option. But what people don’t know is that even with the best medication and the patient being made completely comfortable, it is not the pain that causes people to ask for what people call a “hastened death”, but the humiliation and suffering that accompanies most terminal disorders.…

    • 2132 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    He agrees that identity is a bundle of memories or perceptions; meaning that they all interconnect; or that these perceptions “succeed each other with an inconceivable rapidity, and are in a perpetual flux and movement” (2). It is hard to maintain and to say that one is exactly in that personality forever because he is always changing…

    • 1005 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    “The Association asserts that people with dementia should be allowed to exercise their remaining capacities for choice, consistent with their cultural expectations. Denying this free exercise challenges their independence and dignity” (ALZ.org, 2015, para. 6); however, some individuals argue this point. Another ethical issue facing The Alzheimer’s Association is “the need for more empathy by caregivers and the need for more empathy training. It has been found that empathy levels are different between male and female caregivers and, that the higher degree of empathy the caregivers show toward their patients, the less distress their patients have” (Gilson & Moyer,…

    • 1247 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Autonomy is integral to health care; however, promoting and sustaining patient autonomy may be more difficult to enact than is often suggested. According to Hewitt-Taylor (2004), the concept of autonomy becomes more complex when the patient is a child, or an adult who has learning disabilities or a mental health problem that might be considered to impinge on their ability to make informed decisions. An adult with a mental health problem, who is unable to function autonomously has to rely on their caregivers and POAs for their care. In situations like this, health care staff need to be aware of the legal as well as moral and ethical issues involved when facilitating autonomous choices for their patients (Edgar, et al., 2001). The distinction…

    • 162 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Alejandra Swartz (Dec 10, 2001) "Dissociative Identity Disorder" retrieved Dec 1,2005 from: Http://allpsych.com 1999-2003, AllPsych and Heffner Media Group, Inc…

    • 2104 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Euthanasia the assisted killing of a terminal patient is a controversial topic that medical professionals cannot avoid. Many health professionals face the ethical dilemma of whether or not they should end a patient’s misery. Patient’s rights are always the top priority, doctors are taught to find every possible way to treat and cure the patient, but the possibility of the patient being irremediable to what extent is the health care professionals willing to go to give the patient their wishes?…

    • 920 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Right To Die Controversy

    • 1189 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Who are we to say when we should die? Are we trying to play God, or do we just want the right to end the inevitable a little sooner than God’s plan for us? This paper will discuss pros and cons of euthanasia with stories and research. Such as the case of a ninety five year old comma patient, whose family receives the news that she could live for months, years even in a vegetative state on life support; leaving the family questioning whether or not to pull the plug and put an end to what otherwise would be like the “death of a hundred deaths.”…

    • 1189 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Assisted Suicide

    • 2422 Words
    • 10 Pages

    Summary: Physician-assisted suicide in the States and the Netherlands is the topic in this article. The purpose of the article was to discuss the laws and regulations of physician assisted suicide (PAD) and the deciding factor of when PAD should be implemented when patience have dementia and are unable to make decisions on their own. In the Netherlands they have come up with a “advance euthanasia directives” (AED) in which pt's with early onset dementia could write an AED stating that if they ever progressed into severe dementia they could stop the suffering with PAD. The controversy as you could imagine comes from the difficult decision of knowing if the pt is enjoying any form of living when they cannot make decisions to let you know how they feel. This is where many people argue that PAD is not right even if the AED was signed while the pt was fully competent, stating that physicians do not have the right to determine if the pt is enjoying life or not. The other side argues that if you are allowed to refuse care in ways such as AMA (Against Medical Advice) or refusing life sustaining treatment and die a slow painful death people with dementia should be able to choose a fast painless death to relieve them from a slow painful death. The largest…

    • 2422 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Ethics encompass every aspect of the world. Each direction a person wishes to take can be directed by their moral compass. However, the complexity of the world requires an analysis of the morals to make certain that everyone follows the same standards in society. There are many jobs that require consistent conversations on ethics. One of these jobs that I was exposed to is nursing and that is the field that I worked in for several years. One of the ethical issues is how to help people with dementia. Throughout my paper I will be discussing the ethical issue of neglect and force in nursing.…

    • 1243 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) is a condition where a single person has more than one distinct personality. Dissociative describes a state where the functioning of a person’s identity, including consciousness, memory and awareness is disturbed or eliminated completely. A person with this illness is completely aware and understanding of their own self, but entirely unaware of, or dissociated from the alternate personality present inside their mind. The alternate personality is referred to as an “alter”. Because the patients are oblivious to their actions as they are in their alter, amnesia or long gaps in memory occur, gaps that could lasts for days, even weeks. Despite the illness, patients do know who they are, the one primary identity known as the host. Normally it takes just seconds for one personality to replace another. On some occasions however, the transformation is slower, but either way the appearance of one personality and the departure of another is often triggered by a stressful event.…

    • 830 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Best Essays

    Ross, C., & Ellason, J. (1997). JOAN W. ELLASON AND COLIN A. ROSS DISSOCIATIVE IDENTITY DISORDER Am J Psychiatry 154:6, June 1997 Two-Year Follow-Up of Inpatients With Dissociative Identity Disorder. American Journal of Psychiatry, 184, 832-839. Retrieved April 20, 2014, from the Ebsco database.…

    • 2668 Words
    • 11 Pages
    Best Essays
  • Good Essays

    Dissociative identity disorder is a condition that has continued to baffle scientists for many years. In this disorder, two or more distinct personalities are present in the individual. These personalities can have their own abilities, history, and memories. These personalities are also capable of taking control of the patient’s behavior. This paper mostly focuses on the possible causes, controversy associated with DID, symptoms, diagnosis, and treatments.…

    • 952 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays