The Ends of Human Life: Medical Ethics in a Liberal Polity

Ezekiel Emanuel, trained as both a physician and a political theorist, rejects the claim that most of today’s dilemmas of medical ethics are created by advances in medical technology. He maintains that the seemingly endless debates are the inevitable consequence of liberal political values. He proposes an alternative ideology, a liberal communitarianism that imagines a federation of political communities dedicated to democratic deliberations to guide the formulation of laws and policies.