Euthanasia

volitional capacity for a dignified death

Abstract

This is a review article, using the Gloogle Academic and SciELO databases to survey the consulted works. The objective is to understand the legal, social and ethnic aspects involved in the volitional capacity of patients in terminal stages to decide on a dignified death, as well as to elaborate the problems of euthanasia, identify impeding causes and present solutions for the research object. Euthanasia has occurred since the beginning, there are reports in the Middle Ages, in the Roman Empire and also in peoples and tribes, such as the Egyptians. From the 23rd century, the term _euthanasia _ was used. With technological advances, life was prolonged, and the topic was polemicized and debated in line with several fundamental rights. As you know human beings are in a constant process of death, finitude is certain, due to this, we seek to prolong life excessively. In view of this, it was divided into small subspecies: euthanasia, assisted suicide, dysthanasia and orthothanasia. Thus, in the 1940s, with a concern for life, the legislator chose to typify it in the Brazilian legal system, which brought with it several systematic and multidisciplinary debates. In this way, the search for guaranteeism is essential in the legal system and laws must evolve according to contemporary society, leading to a decriminalization of passive euthanasia.