Mrs Boyle is a very professional but very patronising medical social worker, and is very optimistic about her patients. We learn this from the extract from the piece. “Try not to dwell on it. I’ll see what I can do to get you started on some occupational therapy.” “My name is Mrs Boyle.” Here we see that she is very optimistic and tries to get on to improving her patients’ as soon as possible. This shows that she is eager to do her job and obviously takes pride in it. Ken then says to her, ”And you’ve come to cheer me up”, giving the reader the impression that he is not looking forward to his “so-called help” and believes that it is more of a burden or a chore than help. “I wouldn’t put it like that.” Mrs Boyle is polite and has obviously endured many troublesome patients and has good, polite answers to reply with. “How would you put it?” Ken does not seemed convinced yet and acts towards her like he is trying to break her down being able to be rid of her and left alone. “I’ve come to see if I can help.” Mrs Boyle yet again replies politely trying to convince Ken she is harmless and the time of them together will eventually benefit him greatly.
John is a porter at the hospital. He is a relaxed man who is generally very friendly and easily has the ability to cheer people up. John is chatty and easygoing. He is in a steel band and he aims to go professional with that career. He has the great quality of being able to cheer Ken up whenever he sees him or is around. “Music. We got a steel band-with some comedy numbers and we're getting around a bit…. We’re auditioning for Opportunity Knocks in four months.” John has the tactfulness, in a way, to not ask Ken how he is and bring the attention and focus on him, whereas Ken most likely wants to hear about something else like John’s life, interests and his future. This shows John to be a good character and good people person and seems to interest Ken in his qualities without Ken becoming jealous. “That’s great…Really great… I like steel bands… There’s something fascinating about using oil drums-make something out of scrap… Why not try knocking a tune out of me?” “Why not?” Ken seems to genuinely mean what he says here to John showing his true interest for unusual past times. John becomes a friend to Ken because John is not false to him, trying to avoid saying anything that will upset or offend him; he is just himself, which Ken shows that he admires from a person.
Doctor Claire Scott is a Junior Registrar in the hospital. She is professional, friendly, chatty and intelligent. She always puts others before herself and treats her patients as human beings, not an object to cure of its illness. These few quotes tell the reader quite a lot about her personality and method of treating her patients. “You’re bright and chirpy this morning.” Dr. Scott talking to Ken. Dr. Scott greets Ken in a bright, warm and friendly way opening Ken up to her. She also compliments him, making him feel better about himself therefore trying to speed up his acceptance of his new life. “It’s marvellous you know. The courage of the human spirit.” Ken also seems to be acting in a brighter and reasonably chirpy mood, praising the strength of himself. “Nice to hear the human spirit’s ok.” Dr. Scott gets along well with Ken as they speak the same sort of language and she seems to be sympathetic of his position but does not pity him. Dr. Scott works hard and seems in control but relaxed at the same time. She is very concerned for all her patients. “Sister. It’s Mr. Harrison. He seems a little agitated this morning.” This quote proves that Dr. Scott takes notice of every change in mood Ken has and what she can do to make him feel better, being a very caring Doctor. “Yes, he’s beginning to realise what he’s up against.” “I’m changing the prescription and putting him on a small dose of Valium. I’ll have a word with Dr. Emerson. Thank you Sister.” This shows that Dr. Scott puts the extra effort to make sure of the comfort of her patients.
Ken has a view of the professional skills of the nursing staff. He believes that the nursing staff are not treating him like a human being with a character and a personality but just another patient to be cured to their ability and then sent away. Ken says to a Nurse about their professionalism and how that they have to keep emotionally separate from the patients and he does not like it. This is what the nursing staff have to do to be “professional”, and they have to emotionally keep their distance from a patient, to prevent emotional distress when a patient is lost or their condition worsens. It would prevent them from them helping others and doing their jobs properly. Ken also says this to Mrs Boyle, the hospital Medical Social Worker. Ken gets angry with her professionalism and how she always tries to avoid the reality, from an optimistic point of view. This causes Ken to want to talk to other people with everyday life problems that he used to be able to relate to from having them himself. One of the staffs’ car ran out of petrol on the way to work. “You and the doctors with your appalling so-called professionalism, which is nothing more than a series of verbal tricks to prevent relating to your patients as human beings.” Ken wants the Doctors and Nurses to show their true self to him without covering it up with “professionalism”. He feels that they might as well with him anyway as he is most likely going to be a patient for a very long time there.
On page forty-eight Ken says, “I’m a sculptor, an airy-fairy artist.” On page two Ken says that he is a teacher when he was talking to Nurse Sadler.
Ken says, “in the first time in medical history a ruptured spinal column will heal itself”, this is said sarcastically to prove the point that he will never be able to walk or depend upon himself again. In his view he might as well be dead because he is no use to himself or anyone else. He knows that he will be paralysed for the rest of his life.
Ken engages in sexual banter with the nurses because he is sexually frustrated. The nurses know that this talk is safe because he cannot do anything about it. “Lying on a bed being massaged by two beautiful women.” This is said by Ken, like it is his dream to try and see the good side of his position, to cheer himself up.
Ken finds being paraplegic mentally frustrating, as he feels that he is not a man, as he cannot even masturbate anymore. He cannot do any of the things he used to do and not being able to feel like a man, strong, proud and independent, he feels that he has lost all point of living.
Ken feels that he does not want to be sedated with drugs, as if he is now only going to be a “head in a bed” and he wants to be able to use his head clearly to at least be able to make decisions for himself even if he cannot do anything else. “If you want peace you take the pill.” Ken is trying to be convinced that the pill will give him peace, which his carers obviously think he needs but for him it would make his situation worse.
Although Ken is alive, he has no quality of life. If nature had taken its course with not so much medical technology as the present day, he would have already been dead.
Ken and Dr. Scott have feelings between each other, “he is so intelligent, bright…. He says he wants to die.” Ken’s wit and intelligence appeals to her and she feels it would be a shame to lose such an exceptional mind from the world. She feels sympathetic and pity towards him. As a man, and an artist and a sculptor he is attracted, physically towards Dr. Scott. “You have lovely breasts.” Ken appreciates the human form and Dr. Scott’s.
“I have decided not to stay alive.” Doctor Emerson goes against Ken’s wishes as a doctor, and wants to keep him alive. The audience is not surprised that Ken wants to die as he now has no quality of life.
Ken has a view of professionalism. He says, “it’s horrid”. He believes that professionalism is, “when you get a personal question, just ignore it –change the subject or better still, ask another question back.” Ken has this view, as every member of staff there, apart from John, in the hospital has felt guilt for Ken and they change the subject when the conversation begins to wander onto the subject of his accident when talking with him. Ken becomes increasingly annoyed by this.
A view of professionalism is brought up again on page twenty-nine with Mrs Boyle. He says, “it’s marvellous you know. All you people have the same technique. When I say something really awkward you just pretend I haven’t said anything at all. You’re all the bloody same… Well there’s another outburst. That should be your cue to comment on the light-shade or the colour of the walls.” This shows the audience that Ken is getting stressed with the staff at the hospital not really listening to him or taken any real notice of what he says.
Page thirty-six proves that people pity Ken. When Ken is asleep John repeats the steel band game on him and says, “Ping-Pong… You poor bastard.” This is understandable in anyone’s position that is around Ken. Ken does not understand that people need to pity him to value their own lives more. The nursing staff are not allowed to get too personal with a patient as this could affect their professional judgement when treating their patient.
Ken sends his fiancée away as he does not want to keep her trapped, as he would feel bad for her being a thing of beauty to him, he cannot keep her there. He did not want her to see him anymore. Ken thought that his fiancée is a young healthy woman who will want to marry and have babies when she is older, and he could not give her that. Even if she said she would never want babies, Ken knew that she’d be lying. “She wants babies-real ones. Not ones that will never learn to walk.” Ken wanted her free. In his own view Ken does believe that he did it for himself, therefore he was not being unselfish or generous. Ken believed, “It would destroy my self-respect if I allowed to become the object with which people can safely exploit their masochist tendencies.”
Ken’s “obvious intelligence” weakens his case as he is told by Dr. Travers that he is too intelligent to die. His intelligence weakens his case because it shows that he has got more chance of a decent life than an unintelligent person, as he has more options open for his life with a strong, intelligent mind like his. Life may be slightly easier for him with his intelligence. With intelligence such as Ken’s he could use it, as being paralysed does not matter with brainwork, as his limbs are not required to use his mind. An unintelligent person may have a very boring life as they may have spent their life before their accident being a very physical, active person, using actions to speak and not their brains. Losing Ken’s life would mean losing a very great mind that is very rare. At Dr. Travers speech Ken answers back with, “that sounds like catch twenty-two.” Ken means if you are an intelligent person to have no case for suicide, there is no reason for you to die. Ken demonstrates that he thinks that Dr. Travers thinks that he is not going to succeed his case.
Page fifty explains Ken’s family background. It shows where he has come from and where his intelligence and his life has come from. Ken’s Mother does not restrict or stop Ken from making his decision, showing understanding and where Ken’s rational thinking comes from.
Ken’s view on the purpose of tranquillisers are that taking a tablet is to stop Ken from talking, thinking and maybe go to sleep, which will give the Doctors peace. He believes that the tranquillisers are not for him, they are for the Doctors’ and their own tranquillity. The Doctors think that the tranquilliser tablet will help Ken come to terms with being paralysed for the rest of his life. Ken refuses to take the tranquilliser, “then you eat the tablet if you want tranquillity, because I’m not going to.” Ken says this to one of the Doctors when they try and get him to take the tablet because he thinks it will take away his consciousness. This proves his point of wanting to die, because if they want to keep a rare mind alive then they are definitely not going to do it when they are giving him tranquillisers. “My consciousness is the only thing I have and I must claim the right to use it, as far as possible, act on conclusions I may come to.”
Through John, Brian Clarke raises the issue of money. It costs thousands of pounds to keep people like Ken alive, when it would only cost a few pounds to keep children from somewhere like Africa alive, with a measles vaccination. Also John says that the people in the intensive care room are just waiting there to die, “it’s just the ante-room of the morgue.” He seems to think that people here should be left to die naturally and people with more chance of a life should be helped. “In Africa children die of measles. It would only cost a few pounds to keep them alive.”
Brian Clarke the writer shows the audience that Dr. Emerson does care about his patients. He fights for more equipment and money. It shows that Dr. Emerson is more committed than we initially think. He has to manage a hospital and he fights to improve it. “Bloody administrators. In this job a degree in accounting would be more valuable to me than my M.D… Still what can I do for you?”
Doctor Emerson is in favour of administering Valium to Ken because he believes it will help him accept the reality of being paralysed for the rest of his life, but it will not dull him completely of his consciousness. “We must help him to understand the real problem he has. We must help him to an acceptance of his condition.” Dr. Emerson also thinks that Ken does “not know about the drugs and their effects”, so he will not know what he needs. Dr. Scott is in support of Ken’s views because she believes Ken taking the Valium will not improve his consciousness and he has the right to keep his consciousness. “And how does a depressant drug improve his consciousness?” Also she believes that Ken knows best about his body and that he can feel the drugs effects.
Ken has decided that life is not worth living because he sees that there is nothing he can do with his life anymore. He used to have a job he enjoyed, teaching people to sculpt, and he cannot do it anymore. He requests for a book, sarcastically, “Ho to be a sculptor with no hands.” Ken is very upset and depressed and he sees no point in living anymore. Also he seems to hate most of the nursing staff and their professionalism, and he feels he is not human anymore and they do not treat him as a human, which makes him more miserable. “If you were human, if you were treating me as a human, you’d tell me to bugger off.”
Doctor Scott is upset after her conversation with Ken because he showed to her that his decision to die was a calm, rational and intelligent decision. She saw how he felt that there was no point in him living any more as he could not do anything. He could not act on his sexual desires any more and he did not feel like a man. Also he has feelings for Dr. Scott physically and intelligently as he has an artists’ eye, and has an eye for the beauty of the human form. “I still have tremendous sexual desire.” Ken is different in her eyes because she sees he is not just another patient depressed, he knows exactly how his life is going to be from now on and he has intelligently made the decision to be discharged from the hospital even if it means death. Dr. Scott sees that Ken has clearly thought his decision through and she does not want to go against his wishes. This makes Dr. Scott upset because she feels that Ken has a brilliant mind and she does not want it destroyed. “She is very upset. Sister passes and looks at her.” “He’s so… bright…intelligent… He says he wants to die.” “Many patients say that.” “I know that Sister, but he means it. It’s just a calm, rational decision.” Here Doctor Scott is talking to Sister and expressing her distress with Ken’s decision.
Ken wants Mr Hill, his solicitor, to let the hospital discharge himself. “Certainly, if there’s anything I can do…” “There is.” “Yes?” “… Get me out of here.” “… I don’t understand Mr Harrison.” Mr Hill came to help Mr Harrison settle his compensation for the accident, but Ken unexpectedly said that is not what he wanted and why he had asked him to come there. He actually needed to be represented, to be discharged from the hospital. Mr Hill at first seems confused but he then understood Ken’s wishes and decided to speak to Ken’s Doctor about it, Dr Emerson.
During Mr Hill’s conversation with Dr. Emerson, Mr Hill says, “I begin to see why he thought it necessary to be represented.” Mr Hill means that without his help Ken would never win a battle between himself and Dr. Emerson. As Dr. Emerson’s views on Ken being discharged from the hospital were just too strongly against the matter. Dr. Emerson feels that he would be killing his patient if he allowed him to be discharged from the hospital, and that is totally against a Doctors teaching. Dr. Emerson’s stubbornness about discharging Ken would not change, and he continued to say that, “That’s impossible,” for Ken to be discharged. Therefore Mr Hill felt Ken needed help to make everyone else in the hospital would see his views on the matter.
Doctor Emerson tries to explain Ken’s “desire to die” to Mr Hill and why Ken has said this. He explains this by saying that Ken “is suffering from depression. He is incapable of making a rational decision about his life and death.” He tries to make Mr Hill believe that Ken still has not recovered from his accident, and that he is mentally unbalanced. Mr Hill’s response to Dr. Emerson’s statement is to find out the proof of whether Ken is mentally unbalanced or not. He does this by asking Dr. Emerson if he can bring a psychiatrist in for a second opinion. Dr. Emerson cannot refuse this, as it would sound as if he was lying and Ken is not mentally unbalanced. “Are you maintaining that Mr Harrison is mentally unbalanced?” “Yes.” “Would you have any objection to my bringing in a psychiatrist for a second opinion?”
The Mental Health Act of 1959 is going to help Dr. Emerson with Ken’s case, because Dr. Emerson is most likely going to tell the Judge that Ken needs to be admitted at the hospital under this act. This means Dr. Emerson can keep Ken at the hospital to give him whatever treatment he thinks fit. As an experienced doctor, Dr. Emerson can explain that from a doctor’s point of view, which is very professional, Ken is mentally unbalanced, and cannot make a decision of such seriousness and finality. “I ought to warn you Dr. Emerson is likely to take steps to have you admitted here as a person needing treatment under the Mental Health Act of 1959.” “Can he do that?” “He probably can.”
Dr. Emerson has a conversation with Dr. Scott. He begins with, “I’m sure it’s not necessary for me to say this but…” Dr. Emerson is implying to Dr. Scott that it is clear and obvious that Mr Harrison (Ken) is entirely physically stable and that Dr. Scott should now know that there is no reason for Ken to die. Dr. Emerson wants Dr. Scott to be on his side and see that there is no need for Ken to die, as the hospital has done everything it can to make Ken alive and well. Dr. Emerson wants it to stay that way. “Mr Harrison is now physically stable. There is no reason why he should die; if he should die suddenly, I would think it necessary to order a post-mortem and to act on whatever was found.”
Ken believes a doctor treats a “customer” differently from the way a sculptor treats his “customer”. He thinks the difference is the right to choose. Doctor’s do not really give the right to choose. They tell you what you need, why you need it and when. Giving you no real time to think about it, whereas a sculptor would give the customer his professional opinion on the piece of artwork, what was good or bad about it. A sculptor, even if the piece were awful, would give the right to choose for him or herself after the customer has considered a sculptor’s professional opinion. In this sense Ken makes out like he does not like doctors, as they need to be in control not letting anyone else have their own decision. “But we’re not talking about a piece of sculpture to decorate a room, but about your life.” “That’s right Doctor. My life.”
Ken describes his parents to Dr. Travers and their attitudes towards his accident. We learn that Ken’s parents are working class and live in Scotland. We learn that Ken’s Father gives off an image of being tough and manly, but he is really the opposite. “But it was the other way round. My Father can only think with his hands. He used to stand around here completely at loss.” We learn that Ken’s Mother is emotional, understanding, motherly and brave. She allows Ken to make his decision and she does not complain or to tell him otherwise. She just understands. “My Mother would sit here-just understanding. She knows what suffering’s about.” “She looked at me for a minute. There were tears in her eyes. She said: Aye lad, it’s thy life…don’t worry about your Dad - I’ll get him over it.”
Suicide is when someone takes their own life by themselves. Euthanasia is when someone takes his or her own life with the aid of someone else. Ken’s intentions are not to carry on with the life he has anymore. He believes his life is already over. “Yes, quite sure, for me life is over. I want it recognised because I can’t do things that I want to do. That means I can’t say the things I want to say. Is that a better end? You understand don’t you?”
Dr. Scott tells Ken that she thinks he does not want to “win” his fight to die. She says that the whole fight has shown him, he is a human being again and that he just really wanted to have some purpose in his life now. “I was saying, isn’t that just the point, isn’t that what this fight has shown you? That you are a human being again. You’re not fighting for death. I don’t think you want to win.”
“Habeas Corpus” is “against the law to deprive anyone of their liberty without proper cause. If anyone is so deprived, they or a friend can apply for a writ of habeas corpus, which is the Latin for “you may have the body.” It applies to Ken because it is for special cases that need to move very fast.
John is a “tonic” to Ken because he knows that John is free of guilt. He is an exception to everyone else in the hospital. They all feel guilt for him about his accident; this makes Ken feel bad. Ken knows that John is “sorry for me but knows bloody well it isn’t his fault. He’s a tonic.”
Ken says that the hospital is being deliberately cruel. He says this because he is trying to prove a point. His point is that if he is not discharged from the hospital, he would spend the rest of his life there pointlessly with nothing but his brain active, and even that cannot be used to its full extent. “Everything is geared up to keeping my brain active, with no real possibility of it ever being able to direct anything. As far as I can see, that is an act of deliberate cruelty.”
Ken explains his decision to die to the Judge. He justifies this by saying, “it is a question of dignity. Look at me here. I can do nothing, but the basic primitive functions.” Ken does not feel like a man anymore, and he feels the "hospitals persistent effort to maintain this shadow of life an indignity and it’s inhumane.” It is Ken’s not being able to have a chance of dignity that makes his decision to die a reasonable choice.
Ken refuses Dr. Scott’s kiss because he knows that Dr. Scott knows that he has won his fight and although she feels sad she wants to congratulate him. Ken feels there is no need for this, therefore he refuses Dr. Scott’s kiss. “Oh don’t, but thank you.”
The ending turns out sadly for the audience, but in my view it was not so sad because Ken got what he was fighting for. As I read the play I never thought that Ken would win against the Doctors and I thought that the play would finish with Ken stuck in a bed for the rest of his life, but it did not. We find out that Ken dies in the end as he wins his case, and is allowed to be discharged from the hospital, which results in his death. “Mr Harrison, you can always change your mind. It’s not too late.”
In the opening moments of the play, the audience learns that Ken’s injuries are a “ruptured spinal column” by the author Clarke showing the audience. Immediately Brian Clarke presents the audience with a character with no quality of life, so he may choose to die. The hospital staff is “the optimism industry” they are the producers of hope for the patients to heal. This is a metaphor. Ken calls them this. The optimism does not seem to be working on Ken, “for the first time in the history of medical science, a ruptured spinal column will heal itself – it’s just a bit of a bore waiting for it to happen.”
Ken calls the staff the “monstrous regiment”. He feels that they are regiment like because the nursing staff has uniforms, ranks, they order other staff and patients about, and they are in power in a hospital. They are monstrous because Ken is in a bed and he cannot do anything, he is in their power. He most likely feels threatened and intimidated by their presence, as they are in control of him.
Ken calls Nurse Sadler “a breath of fresh air”. This is a metaphor, meaning she is new. Nurse Sadler is friendly and inexperienced. She is new to the hospital and takes orders from Sister Anderson. She is young and attractive and has not yet finished “Primary Training School”, nurses training school. Sister Anderson is also a Nurse, but it is very different to Nurse Sadler. She has been at the hospital for a long time and she is very experienced. She is older than Nurse Sadler and stricter. She is very professional.
Ken says he is “feeling sorry for himself.” Maybe he is, but he is realising that he has got to face the rest of his life being a paraplegic, no use of his limbs. Ken also says “from where I’m lying, if you can make it at all-even with your right hand- it would be heaven…” this shows Ken is sexually frustrated and “bloody jealous” of anyone that can have a relationship and be in love with someone, as he cannot move or do anything with his life now that he is paralysed. Ken also says, “can’t even say I got out of the wrong side of bed.” This also shows that he is frustrated and annoyed that he cannot move. He cannot physically masturbate or have any sex life at all, he is depressed.
I interviewed My Father, Mr Tony Piggott, on Euthanasia and suicide. The questions were based on the play, “Whose Life Is It Anyway?” by Brian Clarke. He believed that Euthanasia is the choice of when to die with the aid of another, and suicide is taking ones own life. He did not know what a “living will” was, but if it meant the same as a normal will, then he said that he thought it was what you wish to happen to yourself, family and possessions after you die. If a living will is the same as a normal will then he believes that it should be respected. A will is legal and binding once signed, but he did not know what a living will is, therefore he does not know whether it is legal or not.
Euthanasia is no different form having a pet put down or put to sleep, because why should a human suffer more than an animal before it is put to rest. We all have a right to a quality of a life. If there is no quality of life left, what is the point of living. My Father would have this point of view and agree to Euthanasia performed on a loved one if they were seen to be in pain. He would want that pain stopped. Also if he himself was in that kind of pain or upset he would want Euthanasia performed on him.
Euthanasia is not anti-religious because medicine is anti-religious; it keeps people alive longer than their natural life span. Euthanasia is not against medical ethics as medical ethics are supposed to keep you alive and well, not alive and in pain. Euthanasia is not legal in this country, believed my Father. Euthanasia is such a modern issue because it has recently been made legal in Holland and a few Doctors in England have performed Euthanasia on patients. My Father feels that Euthanasia is not a suitable subject for a play, because it is upsetting and raises a difficult subject to cope with for a certain age. He believes for fifteen or sixteen year olds to be considering such issues as Euthanasia is a difficult subject to consider, but it is up to the individual whether to consider Euthanasia or not.
My Father has no idea about what religious groups think of Euthanasia. He thinks that a pro-life lobby is people that try to preserve life at any cost. My Father thinks that it is his liberty to decide what he wishes to do and that anyone who tries to stop him is depriving him of that liberty.
I believe, personally, that if somebody is really in pain, or suffering, or just do not want to live anymore, and they have clearly and rationally thought their decision through about wanting to die, then they should be able to whether they need assisting in their death or not.
Official church policies usually oppose Euthanasia. The Roman Catholic Church is the largest single funder opposed to Euthanasia. It invests more money in its fight against Euthanasia than all the combined resources of “right to die” societies around the world many times over. I think that the Roman Catholic Church would not change their views much on Euthanasia, after watching Ken’s life, but it might open their eyes a little by watching all his emotions and decisions they might feel sympathy for him and start to understand the reasons behind Euthanasia.
The Episcopalian (Anglican) Unitarian, Methodist, Presbyterian and Quaker movements are amongst the most liberal, allowing at least individual decision making in cases of active Euthanasia. Hindu and Sikh Dharma may also leave it to individual consequence. I think in Ken’s case these movements and Religious parties would agree with Ken’s decision and maybe support his decision.
Nowadays, few faiths prohibit passive Euthanasia, or refusal of treatment decisions. Those that do tend to oppose it include conservative
Evangelicals, Islam and the Mormon Church. There is Jaina ethic of voluntary death through fasting, for instance. It is often thought that the Roman Catholic Church absolutely prohibits suicide, but Catholic theologians have confirmed that the prohibition, whilst being the Vatican’s current position, is not an inviolable one.
The Salvation Army believes that people do not have the right to death by their own decision. “Only God is sovereign over life and death.” The Christian Reformed Church in North America, in 1971 adopted a resolution which stated: “that synod, mindful of the sixth commandment, condemn the wanton and arbitrary destruction of any human being at any state of its development from the point of conception to the point of death.” I think that The Salvation Army would be completely against Ken’s decision of death even if they followed his emotions and pain throughout the story. They would still believe that he had no right to make this decision.
The Islamic religion is against Euthanasia, because the Qur’an states, “Take not life which Allah made sacred otherwise than in the course of Justice.” The Islamic religion would also be against Ken’s decision of death.
The Mennonite denomination is a decentralised faith group in which individual conferences make their own statements on social issues. They believe that pain, isolation and fear are the main factors that drive dying persons to consider suicide. They feel that the state should not facilitate suicide, but rather control physical and emotional pain, and support the dying within a caring community setting. I think that this decentralised faith group might support or agree with Ken’s decision to die, but say this reluctantly.