Abstract
In Part II we look at the boundaries of torture and the ethical issues they bring to light. In this chapter I employ Nel Noddings’ notion of the three components of evil as a framework of analysis. Each one is applied to torture, recognizing that its aspects of physical pain and mental and psychological suffering are set out by the UN Convention Against Torture in 1984. One change over the years is the increasing use of abusive practices which leave no scars or other physical evidence. Examples are sleep deprivation, isolation, threats to family members, and forced standing. For perpetrators, such tactics offer significant advantages.
The therapeutic mission is the profession’s primary role and the core of physicians’ professional identity. If this mission and identity are to be preserved, there are some things doctors must not do.
—M. Gregg Bloche and Jonathan H. Marks.
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Teays, W. (2019). Boundaries of Torture. In: Doctors and Torture. International Library of Ethics, Law, and the New Medicine, vol 80. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-22517-9_5
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