John Hardwig

John Hardwig is a retired philosopher who was head of the philosophy department at the University of Tennessee.^[1] He has published widely on bioethics, end of life issues and the notion of epistemic dependency and the role of experts. He is best known for a 1997 article proposing that individuals have a duty to die in situations when those who love them would have their lives seriously compromised by continuing to take care of them.^[2]

In much of his writings, he calls for the learning of a "dying art", which he describes as becoming necessary at a time when death comes too late, rather than too early. This phenomenon is often referred to as the 'fourth phase' of the epidemiological transition.^[3] He frequently argued that there are cases in which there exists a right to die, especially when prolonging life imposes a great burden on loved ones. His arguments have been very influential among contemporary philosophers.

References

1. "John Hardwig".
2. "Is there a duty to die?". BBC Ethics. Retrieved 10 February 2016.
3. Olshansky, S.J.; Ault, A.B. (1986). "The Fourth Stage of the Epidemiological Transition: The Age of Delayed Degenerative Diseases". Milbank Memorial Fund Quarterly Health and Society 64: 355–391.