This issue is both a religious and moral, initially, euthanasia is prohibited by Christians as it is seen as ending a sacred life given to you as a gift from God, in other words Christians believe in the sanctity of life. This viewpoint is also shared by most of the other religions, including Islam. The matter is also moral, as Dot knows right from wrong, yet she believed that in that particular situation euthanasia was the right choice. However her actions are debatable, and some may believe she did not do the right thing.
There is only one possible solution to this problem, Dot could have refused Ethel’s request and left her to die naturally (but, in constant pain). Dot also had the opportunity to give Ethel painkillers to reduce the hurt, but she didn’t have to help Ethel take her own life.
The scriptwriters dealt with this issue in a very interesting way, Dot’s character is usually depicted as a very religious one, up till the episode, which showed Dot actually assisting her friend to commit euthanasia. After the incident Dot felt extremely un-comfortable with herself, as she personally knew within that what she did was totally inappropriate and immoral, not to mention criminal.
Religious viewpoints were not really presented in this situation, however the idea of euthanasia was, but not really in a religious way. Dot had an extremely hard time deciding whether to help Ethel or not. Dots friendship and unity to Ethel was tested, and these themes were presented by the soap drama. Dots love for Ethel was evident; hence Dot had to make a choice between her religion and her love for her dearest friend. The basic viewpoint that was presented by the scriptwriters was that on some occasions people are forced to do things they don’t necessarily want to do, however for the sake of love and companionship Dot did break the rules of her religion.
There has been a considerable amount of discussion about Dot’s actions, mainly amongst friends and in specific magazines. Some people said that Dot did the most loving thing to help her friend who was in total distress others maintained the belief that Dot had no right to help Ethel commit euthanasia.
In my opinion I believe that what Dot did was wrong, I do belief in the sanctity of life. In addition I am a Muslim, follower, of Islam and in my holly book, the Qur’an, it clearly states that no one apart from Allah (God) has the right under any circumstances to take gods gift away. Furthermore, there was one other viewpoint that some people believe. They thought that what Dot did, could be justified, as her friend Ethel made a decision to end her life and asked Dot to help. These people believed that Dot did the most loving thing, and protestant Christians also tend to believe that sometimes if you do the most loving thing is then you are in the right.
In conclusion the media have presented this situation in an unbiased and fair way, they showed the trauma Dot went through, in order to help her friend. However, we must consider that Dot sacrificed one of the most important things in her life, her religion, for her best friend Ethel.
