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- All Subjects: bioethics
- All Subjects: Complementary and Alternative Medicine
- Creators: McGregor, Joan
- Creators: Forouzeshyekta, Marjon
- Member of: Barrett, The Honors College Thesis/Creative Project Collection
- Resource Type: Text
In this thesis, I delve into the complex ethical issue of deception and coercion as external factors that can undermine consent. Countless theorists have debated the moral permissibility of different forms of deception and coercion, and in this thesis, I propose my own solution to this challenging problem in the ethics of consent. Narrow in scope, my investigation focuses on the morally transformative power of consent and how deception and coercion hinder consent from performing this morally transformative "magic." I argue that certain features of sex are essential to the act of consent, and that deception about these features fundamentally undermines the validity of consent. Furthermore, I support David Boonin's distinction between threats and offers in the coercion literature as the most compelling distinction thus far. Through rigorous analysis and critical engagement with existing literature, my thesis contributes to the ongoing philosophical discourse on consent, deception, and coercion, shedding light on the intricacies of these issues and advancing our understanding of this complex ethical landscape.
An increasingly urgent issue in healthcare is the scarcity of available organs for transplant procedures—both live and cadaveric. Recent proposals have pushed for fiscal incentives and a monetary scheme to encourage live donation, specifically for kidney and liver donations. Such propositions are inherently unethical, contradicting the three guiding principles of organ donation: utility, justice, and respect for persons. Furthermore, these additional economic elements will perpetuate the exploitation of vulnerable communities. The intersecting low socioeconomic quintile populations are threatened the most by a monetary scheme; their need to better their financial status allows them to be taken advantage of easily by third parties. This instigates a cycle in which the vulnerable individuals who volunteer to donate for compensation are actually pushed deeper into poverty. In advocating for monetization, it would permit the public sale of human organs—the commodification of the human body. Alternative solutions must be considered in which the donors and recipients are treated not as a means, but as an end in themselves.