Ethics of Killing

In this book, Christian Erk examines the ethical (im)permissibility of killing humanbeings in general and of selected killings in particular, namely suicide, lethal selfdefence,abortion and euthanasia, as well as organ transplantation and assistedsuicide. He does so by addressing a range of important ethical questions: Whatdoes it mean to act? Of what elements is an action comprised? What is thedifference between a good or evil action and a permissible or impermissibleaction? How can we determine whether an action is good or evil? Is there a moralduty not to kill? Is this duty held by and against all human beings or only persons?What and who is a person? What is human dignity and who has it? What is it thatis actually taken when somebody is killed, i.e. what is life? And closely related tothat: What and when is death? By integrating the answers to these questions intoan argumentative architecture, the book offers a comprehensive exploration ofone of the most fundamental questions of mankind: Under which conditions, ifany, is killing human beings ethically permissible?