%0 Journal Article
%T Fear, Sovereignty, and the Right to Die
%A Jennifer J. Hardes
%J Societies
%D 2013
%I MDPI AG
%R 10.3390/soc3010066
%X This paper addresses the ¡°right to die¡± through the lens of Derrida¡¯s The Beast and the Sovereign, Volume One. Specifically focusing on the case of Tony Nicklinson v. Ministry of Justice, 2012, the essay posits two things. First, Derrida¡¯s insight helps us understand how a ¡°fear of death¡± is a fundamental performative feature of sovereignty politics. Second, in order to maintain its performative role, sovereignty must perpetuate the belief that ¡°man is wolf to man.¡± I argue that, in right-to-die cases, this has the effect of precluding compassionate reasons for taking the life of another. Thus, I posit that these two points, in part, explain how right-to-die cases fail on appeal. All is not lost, however, as this essay advances Derrida¡¯s position that these performative workings of sovereignty, which currently preclude the right to die, are entirely deconstructable. As such, exploring how right-to-die cases are articulated in law permits a deconstruction of sovereignty politics and allows us to open up other ways of thinking about the relation between sovereignty, life, death, and our relationships with ¡°others¡±.
%K Derrida
%K Hobbes
%K sovereignty
%K right to die
%K biopolitics
%K compassion
%U http://www.mdpi.com/2075-4698/3/1/66