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Do Not Go Gentle

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What to expect

"Do Not Go Gentle is a bracing, often chilling wrestle with the ethical dilemmas surrounding the assisted death service - a deeply unsettling read, clear and powerful. Kathleen Stock remains fearless, endless, thought provoking and always entertaining." Nick Cave

"Characteristically sharp, clever and vital," Jane O'Grady, The Daily Telegraph

"Admirably clear and cogent... this is a polemic, but a polite one." Kathryn Hughes, The Guardian

Is there a right to die?

Is assisted death really compassionate?

Are we sleepwalking into a moral disaster?

In Do Not Go Gentle, acclaimed writer and philosopher Kathleen Stock tackles one of the great debates of our time: should we set up a system of assisted death? With her trademark sharp thinking and dry wit, the bestselling author of Material Girls argues that despite what some progressives might tell you, assisted death will not give a person more "freedom" or "control" over their lives. Whether you have a terminal illness, are in chronic pain, or are disabled, being able to ask your doctor to kill you fundamentally changes society's attitude towards the vulnerable - and in a sinister direction.

Life is complex. For some individuals, an assisted death might be the right choice. But we should be deeply wary of introducing a system that offers death as just another option, especially when palliative care is so under-resourced. Expertly marshalling the arguments, Stock's laser polemic cuts through the wishful thinking and clouded reasoning that surrounds the issue and reaffirms life, rather than death, as what we should be fighting for. Collectively, we should rage against the dying of the light.

Critics Review

In Do Not Go Gentle, Kathleen Stock advances the philosophical and empirical case against an assisted death service with her characteristic incisiveness, lucidity, and humour. While the winds of change may seem to favour a fundamental moral shift in our approach to suicide and euthanasia, this timely book sets out why this would be an outcome we should deeply regret and is a must-read, regardless of your starting position in this debate
Sonia Sodha
This is a deeply thoughtful book, scholarly while being highly accessible, and an antidote to the superficial - and often misleading - soundbites propagated by campaigning groups
Professor Katherine Sleeman, King’s College London
In an overheated and often bitter debate, it is very welcome to have a contribution like this - shaped not just by intense feeling, nor by any sort of ideological absolutism, but a clear, careful, evidence-based case for caution around the legalisation of assisted dying. It deserves wide attention, whichever side of the debate you find yourself on
Rowan Williams
With characteristic clarity and calm, Kathleen Stock has cut through the fetish of choice and revealed the meaning of 'assisted dying.' We should all be grateful. Long live Kathleen Stock
Lord Glasman, author of Blue Labour: Politics and the Common Good
A timely analysis of a vital topic
Jesse Norman MP, Shadow Leader of the House of Commons
Kathleen Stock does not beat about the bush: you cannot choose to die, only choose to let others bear the burden of killing you, or try to kill yourself... Thereby she well brings out how, from a virtue ethics perspective beyond that of rights and utility, the absolutist and pragmatic cases against euthanasia in fact constitute one united, teleological case... Whatever side you are on in this debate, this is the one book on the topic that you should read
John Milbank, Emeritus Professor, Department of Philosophy, University of Nottingham
With characteristic clarity, Kathleen Stock dissects the starry-eyed case for legalising assisted suicide, and warns against the socially corrosive realities of its institutionalisation. She adds a fresh voice to a well-rehearsed public controversy
Lord Nigel Biggar, CBE, Regius Professor Emeritus of Moral Theology at the University of Oxford and former member of the ethics committee of the Royal College of Physicians
In her usual calm and witty style, Kathleen Stock establishes a compelling case against assisted suicide, demonstrating how neither freedom nor mercy should be used to justify a state sponsored death service. Stock has an extraordinary gift for bringing clarity and simplicity to complex moral and philosophical questions. Do Not Go Gentle promises to be a crucial intervention in the end of life debate
Miriam Cates
What an extraordinary and brilliant book. I found it absolutely riveting and a must-read for anyone interested not only in this specific debate but what it is to be a human being in a world pulverised by shrill argument and disruption
Matthew D'Ancona
[A] careful philosophical analysis and forensic scrutiny of evidence
The Tablet
An admirably clear and cogent book
Guardian
A bracing, often chilling wrestle with the ethical dilemmas surrounding the assisted death service - a deeply unsettling read, clear and powerful. Kathleen Stock remains fearless, endlessly thought-provoking and always entertaining
Nick Cave
Author Kathleen Stock
Narrator Kathleen Stock
Duration 8 hours and 7 minutes
Release Date
ISBN 9781405566179
Format Audiobook
Publisher Little, Brown Book Group
Genre Philosophy, Religion and politics, Sociology: death and dying
Availability AU, GB, IE, US

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