Today it is very taboo, however in those ancient times, most were tolerant towards it. Many ancient Greeks and Roman physicians performed abortions as well as both voluntary and involuntary mercy killings without even thinking twice about it. There was something implemented, however that was meant to prohibit doctors from giving a deadly drug to anyone, even if the patient asked for it. This was called the Hippocratic Oath and it was taken by physicians and other healthcare professionals swearing to practice medicine with integrity. Despite these efforts, few ancient Greek or Roman physicians followed the oath faithfully and they often gave their patients requested drugs that would end their lives. As a result, voluntary death was widely supported as opposed to prolonged agony. ("Euthanasia," 2010.).
There are many different forms of euthanasia. One type is known as active euthanasia. Active euthanasia is when euthanasia is brought on by an act and a person deliberately causes the patient's death. An example of this would be a patient ding from an overdose of pain killers. The opposite of that is passive euthanasia. In passive euthanasia, a patient is allowed to die by withdrawing or withholding treatment. This could be done by either switching off a machine that is keeping a person alive, or not performing a surgery that would keep a person alive by extending their life for a short time. ("BBC Ethics: Forms of Euthanasia," n.d.).
Next, voluntary euthanasia is when a person has requested to end their life because they are suffering tremendously. On the contrary to that is non-voluntary and involuntary euthanasia. Non-voluntary euthanasia occurs when a person is incapable of making a decision to die or to stay alive and death is chosen for them. This would happen in a case where someone is unconscious or with a baby or a young child. As a result, someone who is old enough and mentally capable would have to make that decision for them.
