The right to die: A comparative approach from the point of Fritz Jahr and Islamic law

Abstract

Under the principle of humanism, the anthropocentric thought placing humans at the center of the universe, humans are the sole judge of their own intellect, emotion, and self. By this reckoning, humans, being the measure of all things, believe they have the right to die. In this article, this important issue to bioethics is presented in a comparative form. First, space is given to the opinions of Fritz Jahr, the first to use the term bioethics; second, the question of whether Islamic law includes the right to die will be discussed. After offering a general theory, the matter is exemplified via the subject of suicide, which will be examined at both the theoretical and practical level.