Defending an argument for a position on active voluntary euthanasia.
Skills required and developed in this task:
- Using the “position, argument, objection and reply” format
- Being precise in formulating a position
- Exploring views that are not your own
- Expressing yourself concisely
Purpose of the task
- To reinforce a useful format for presenting arguments in philosophy
- To give you practice in being very clear about what you are arguing for
- To prepare you to mount your own arguments more ably (in later essays)
- To give practice in writing clearly, directly and briefly.[unique_solution]
The structure of the task
- Choose ONE argument FOR or AGAINST Active Voluntary Euthanasia (AVE)
When writing:
- State the position that the argument is intended to support – either that acts of AVE are morally permissible (or impermissible), or that AVE should be legalised (or remain illegal), or both. You can say “My position is…” or “The position I will be discussing is….”
- State the argument, briefly. You can say “One argument for this position is…”
- Describe ONE objection to that argument. You can say “An objection to this argument is….”
- Offer ONE possible reply to that objection, providing supporting reasons that you have thought of yourself. You can say “My reply to that objection is….”
Hint: Choose an argument that you agree with, and want to defend!
No extra reading is required for this task. If you do refer to a reading, do reference it, but no references are required for this task. You do not need to reference lecture notes either, for this task
Please refer to the argument diagrams provided in the Modules Section, to help you pinpoint what you will present and discuss.