Toward a philosophy of life to underpin personhood in medicine

Abstract

Hans Jonas has broken new ground in the history of Gnosticism [1] and modernity [2], medical ethics [3], and philosophical biology [4]. He has been embraced by people on the political left and others on the political right. Our presentation draws on his interpretation of modernity and his attempt in his philosophical biology to provide a new path out of some of the dead ends of modernity. As Jonas knew, these concerns have a direct bearing on how we think about medicine.