Nothing More To Do: Euthanasia, General Practice, and End-of-Life Discourse in the Netherlands

Abstract

Euthanasia in the Netherlands, which has been legal since 1984, is often talked about; yet, only rarely does it culminate in a euthanasia death. In 2001, for example, only 1 in 10 of those who initiated a request for euthanasia with their physician died a euthanasia death. Using data gathered during a 15-month ethnographic study with general practitioners, families, and patients, this article explores the practice of euthanasia, a practice based mainly in talk. Applying a Foucauldian concept of discourse, I will examine euthanasia as a script for how people think, feel, and act at the end of Dutch life, attempting to answer the question: What are Dutch people talking about when they talk about euthanasia? This article is intended to provide ethnographic data not currently available on the modern-day practice of euthanasia and to add to a growing body of literature on death, dying, and the role of the state.