Essay On The Survival Lottery

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In The Survival Lottery by John Harris (1975) he invites us to consider the “merits of special sort of organ transplant scheme, which he calls the survival lottery.”(p. 272.) Harris’s case follows a group of assumptions. The first being that each life rather killed, or allowed to die is of equal value. Second, Two lives saved are of more value than one life killed to save the other two lives. Third, two lives saved either completely cured, or sufficiently cured show the quality of life that two lives are greater than a healthy life killed to save them. Fourth, two lives saved would be able to live significantly longer on transplant organs (aside possible rejection of original organ) would quantify gain over a completely healthier life than the life chosen at random to be killed. Suppose two patients, A and B, could be saved by organ transplants, and there are available organs, and no other patients are entitled to these organs. Then, if doctors failed to perform the transplants, and let the patients die, it could be said that the doctors are responsible for the deaths of A and...

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