Abstract
Eighteenth-century philosopher David Hume appreciated the tranquil and detached quality of the last segment of his life. In contrast, twenty-first-century physician-philosopher Ezekiel Emmanuel fears the arrival of this same period in his life. Emmanuel proposes not to seek curative medical care from the time he reaches age 75. He agrees with Hume that old age is a time of physical and mental decline but devises a different adaptive approach. Instead of abandoning the ambition that has characterized his life, he will abandon life itself. The chapter explores and assesses twenty-first-century conceptual deterrents to Hume’s recommended tranquil detachment. The discussion zeroes in on contemporary conceptual components that are biased against the elderly, the very age group that our current idea of old age should celebrate rather than condemn.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.
Buying options
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Learn about institutional subscriptionsNotes
- 1.
In the popular sense, to be philosophical is, in U.S. usage, to be ‘rationally or sensibly calm, patient, or composed,’ and in U.K. usage to be ‘calm and stoical, especially in the face of difficulties or disappointments’. See entry on Dictionary.com at http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/philosophical?s=t
- 2.
Mary Mothersill’s 1999 Presidential Address for the American Philosophical Association, titled ‘Old Age,’ is a wonderful example of the Humean view’s stimulating effect on philosophers.
- 3.
Our philosophical accounts of Hume’s and Emmanuel’s adaptive valuations of quality of life in old age are not meant to track the two contending psychosocial theories of personal development in old age: the disengagement theory and the activity theory. For example, what sociologists mean by ‘detachment’ is not what Hume means by ‘detached from life.’ Nevertheless, applied to these theories, our analysis suggests how to make the descriptive aspects of these theories compatible.
- 4.
It is worthwhile noting that pre-twentieth-century life expectancy was strongly tied to economic class, so attaining 65 years was much less unusual for wealthy people than for workers.
- 5.
Although our characterization of old age is focused on the experience of elders who do not believe in an afterlife, the recommendations in our conclusion are equally applicable to achieving just treatment for old people whose religious convictions convince them that they will or may have an existence after their body’s death.
References
Callahan, D. (2013). On dying after your time. New York Times Sunday Review, December 1. Available at http://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/01/opinion/sunday/on-dying-after-your-time.html.
Cicero, M.T (44 B.C). tr. Andrew peabody on old age. Available at http://oll.libertyfund.org/titles/543.
Cumming, E., & Henry, W. (1961). Growing old. New York: Basic Books.
Emmanuel, E. (2014). Why I hope to die at 75. The Atlantic. October. Available at http://www.theatlantic.com/features/archive/2014/09/why-i-hope-to-die-at-75/379329.
Gordon, S. (2014). An open letter to Ezekiel Emmanuel on life and death. The Healthcare Blog, December 13. Available at http://thehealthcareblog.com/blog/2014/12/13/an-open-letter-to-ezekiel-emmanuel/.
Hardwig, J. (1997). Is there a duty to die? Hastings Center Report, 27(2), 34–42.
Havinghurst, R. (1961). Successful aging. The Gerontologist, 1, 8–13.
Hume, D. (1776). My own life. Available on Wikisource, http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/My_Own_Life.
Jervis, C. (2015). The FDA’s hesitation to approve ‘female sexual dysfunction’ drugs isn’t about sexism. National Women’s Health Network Newsletter March/April. Available at http://nwhn.org/newsletter/node/1757.
Johansson, S.R. (2010). Medics, Monarchs and Mortality, 1600-1800: Origins of the knowledge-driven health transition in Europe. Discussion Papers in Economic and Social History 85, 15. Oxford University Press.
Jones, N. (2012). Old age starts at 54 (and youth ends at 32) - that’s if you ask young people Daily Mail http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2086030/Old-age-starts-54-youth-ends-32.html.
Katz, S. (2013). Active and successful aging. Lifestyle as a gerontological idea. Recherches Sociologiques et anthropologiques, 44(1), 33–49.
Katz, S., & Marshall, B. (2003). New sex for old: lifestyle, consumerism and the ethics of aging. Journal of Aging Studies, 17, 3–16.
Kowal, P. (2001). Indicators for the minimum data set project on ageing: a critical review in sub-Saharan Africa http://www.who.int/healthinfo/survey/ageing_mds_report_en_daressalaam.pdf.
Leland, J. (2015). A group portrait of New York’s ‘oldest old.’ New York Times 6/5/15. http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/07/nyregion/a-group-portrait-of-new-yorks-oldest-old.html.
Mahler, L.O. (n.d.). Does a medical diagnosis qualify a child for special education? Available at http://mcandrewslaw.com/publications-and-presentations/articles/does-a-medical-diagnosis-qualify-a-child-for-special-education/.
Mothersill, M. (1999). Old age. Proceedings and Addresses of the American Philosophical Association, 73(2), 7, 9–23. http://www.jstor.org/stable/3131085.
National Center for Universal Design. http://www.universaldesign.com/about-universal-design.html.
New York Times Editor’s Note, to original AP story (1993) Gov. Lamm Asserts Elderly, If Very Ill, Have Duty to Die’. March 29, 1984. November 23, 1993, http://www.nytimes.com/1984/03/29/us/gov-lamm-asserts-elderly-if-very-ill-have-duty-to-die.html.
Pearson, D. (1965). What Medicare means to taxpayers: How to get voluntary insurance. Washington Post July 29, p. C 1.
Phelan, E.A., & Larsen, E.B. (2002). ‘Successful aging’–where next? Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 50, 17.
Saxton, M. (1998). Disability rights and selective abortion. In R. Solinger (Ed.), Abortion wars, a half century of struggle: 1950 to 2000. (pp. 374–394) Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.
Silvers, A. (1999). Aging fairly: Feminist and disability perspectives on intergenerational justice. In M.W. Walker (Ed.), Mother time: women, aging and ethics (pp. 203–226). Lanham Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield.
Silvers, A. (2013). Too old for the good of health. In M. Boylan (Ed.), Medical ethics (2nd ed.) (pp. 30-43). Hoboken New Jersey: Wiley-Blackwell.
Silvers, A. (2015). Becoming Mrs. Mayberry: Dependency and the right to be free. Hypatia, 30(1), 292–299.
Silvers, A., & Rorty, M. (2012). Alt in Amerika: zur bioetischen debatte in den USA. In Schicktanz S., & Schweda M. (Eds.), Pro-age oder anti-aging? (pp. 107–126). Frankfurt: Campus Verlag.
Singer, N. (2011). The fountain of old age: seeing gold in a graying population. New York Times 6 February 2011, Sunday Business Section, pp. 1, 9.
Taylor, P. (2009). Growing old in America: Expectations vs. realities. Pew Research Center http://www.pewsocialtrends.org/files/2010/10/Getting-Old-in-America.pdf.
United Nations (2006). Convention on the rights of people with disabilities. See http://www.un.org/disabilities/convention/conventionfull.shtml. for the text, history and other information about the CRPD.
United States Department of Health and Human Services and United States Department of Justice (n.d.). Stop Medicare fraud http://www.stopmedicarefraud.gov/.
Von Faber, M., Bootsma-Van Der Wiel, A., Van Exel, E., Gussekloo, J., Lagaay, A.M., Van Dongenm, E., Wesendorp, R.G. (2001). Successful aging in the oldest old: Who can be characterized as successfully aged? Archives of Internal Medicine 161(22), 2694–2700.
World Health Organization. (1948). [www.who.int/bulletin/archives/80(12)981.pdf. WHO definition of Health].
World Health Organization. (1986). Ottawa Charter for Health Promotion WHO/HPR/HEP/95.1.
World Health Organization (n. d.). Definition of an old or elderly person Health Statistics and Information Systems http://www.who.int/healthinfo/survey/ageingdefnolder/en/.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Copyright information
© 2016 The Author(s)
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Silvers, A., Rorty, M.V. (2016). Health Care for Old Age: Rights, Duties and Expectations. In: Scarre, G. (eds) The Palgrave Handbook of the Philosophy of Aging. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-39356-2_26
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-39356-2_26
Published:
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, London
Print ISBN: 978-1-137-39355-5
Online ISBN: 978-1-137-39356-2
eBook Packages: Religion and PhilosophyPhilosophy and Religion (R0)