Death and irreversibility.
(2009) 5th International Symposium of the Definition of Death Network In Reviews in the Neurosciences 20(3-4). p.275-281- Abstract
- The concept of irreversibility plays a central role in most discussions of how to understand and determine human death. This seems to relativize death, since the possibilities of reversal will always depend on circumstance. I discuss the conceptual problems created by this fact, arguing that their seriousness depends on whether we take our conception of death to be a definition or criterion. Relativity is probably not fatal in a definition of death; it might even be desirable in a policy criterion. The concept of permanence is no less philosophically problematic in this context than irreversibility.
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
https://lup.lub.lu.se/record/1552633
- author
- Egonsson, Dan LU
- organization
- publishing date
- 2009
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- published
- subject
- keywords
- permanence, relativity, irreversibility, criteria, death, definitions
- in
- Reviews in the Neurosciences
- volume
- 20
- issue
- 3-4
- pages
- 275 - 281
- publisher
- Freund Publishing House Ltd
- conference name
- 5th International Symposium of the Definition of Death Network
- conference location
- Varadero Beach, Cuba
- conference dates
- 2008-05-20 - 2008-05-23
- external identifiers
-
- pmid:20157997
- scopus:75649106793
- wos:000273232900013
- ISSN
- 0334-1763
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- b229852b-475d-4e5c-ab52-e337c4df2c9a (old id 1552633)
- alternative location
- http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20157997?dopt=Abstract
- date added to LUP
- 2016-04-01 13:48:56
- date last changed
- 2022-02-26 23:15:31
@article{b229852b-475d-4e5c-ab52-e337c4df2c9a,
abstract = {{The concept of irreversibility plays a central role in most discussions of how to understand and determine human death. This seems to relativize death, since the possibilities of reversal will always depend on circumstance. I discuss the conceptual problems created by this fact, arguing that their seriousness depends on whether we take our conception of death to be a definition or criterion. Relativity is probably not fatal in a definition of death; it might even be desirable in a policy criterion. The concept of permanence is no less philosophically problematic in this context than irreversibility.}},
author = {{Egonsson, Dan}},
issn = {{0334-1763}},
keywords = {{permanence; relativity; irreversibility; criteria; death; definitions}},
language = {{eng}},
number = {{3-4}},
pages = {{275--281}},
publisher = {{Freund Publishing House Ltd}},
series = {{Reviews in the Neurosciences}},
title = {{Death and irreversibility.}},
url = {{http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20157997?dopt=Abstract}},
volume = {{20}},
year = {{2009}},
}