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Good for you

Myron Penner

Final Wishes: A Cautionary Tale on Death, Dignity & Physician Assisted Suicide

Paul Chamberlain

Downers Grove, Ill.: InterVarsity Press, 2000. 215 pp. paperback.

Novels are like breakfast cereals. Some are all flash and style with no substance. Others may be good for you, but each morsel is consumed in sheer agony. A rare few combine substance with style in a way that leaves the consumer both satisfied and better off. Paul Chamberlain’s Final Wishes is almost such a book.

Final Wishes is a fictional case study in novel form of physician assisted suicide, or euthanasia. Set in the present day United States, Final Wishes chronicles a week in the life of Ron Grey. Ron is a medical doctor who has been asked to assist in the suicide of a friend, Patrick Metcalfe. Patrick has a terminal disease and has decided that euthanasia will allow him to die with dignity. Unsure of his own views on euthanasia, Ron travels to Illinois in order to spend time with Patrick and to decide if he should grant his dying friend’s request. Ron’s visit happens to coincide with Senate hearings that will determine whether physician assisted suicide will be legal in the state of Illinois. Ron attends the hearings and hears persuasive arguments for and against euthanasia. The tension mounts as both the Senate and Dr. Grey must make a decision regarding this complex and emotionally charged issue.

The main appeal of Final Wishes is the clear presentation of reasons to support or deny the right to a doctor assisted suicide. For example, proponents of euthanasia argue that in society we treat animals “humanely” when we end their suffering by ending their life; shouldn’t we be at least as “humane” to human beings and assist the terminally ill in ending their suffering? Others argue that legalizing euthanasia will place an incredible burden on all elderly and disabled members of society, who will feel they must justify their choice not to end their life. These arguments and others are presented in character dialogue and in margin notes throughout the text. Chamberlain also includes endnotes to document resources for further study.

If you are at all interested in the ethical and social implications of physician assisted suicide, you must read Final Wishes. Chamberlain’s extensive knowledge of this issue shines through in his clear and sensitive treatment of the arguments both pro and con. If, on the other hand, you are looking for a novel rich in imagery, symbolism and characterization, you’ll want to look elsewhere. Chamberlain’s characters are most interesting during the Senate hearings; at other times, the setting and character development are somewhat forced. Read Final Wishes anyway in order to gain a better understanding of this important issue. Remember, some cereals aren’t as attractive as others, but they’re good for you all the same.

Myron Penner likes Corn Flakes and is a member of Bakerview MB Church in Abbotsford, B.C.

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Last modified June 27, 2000.

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