Jedem seinen eigenen Tod

Dying has long since ceased to be suppressed and concealed; on the contrary, it is one of the extensively discussed topics of our time. Many debates revolve around euthanasia and the question of what constitutes a good death. There seems to be a remarkable consensus that a good death is one in which the person remains himself or herself to the end. According to the thesis of this book, we want our "own death": an end of life that suits us, an authentic dying. This ideal guides, in different ways, the palliative care and euthanasia movements. But Nina Streeck shows that what sounds so desirable turns out to be challenging. The idea of "one's own death" threatens to turn into its opposite: a compulsion to die authentically.