TY - JOUR AU - Sullivan, Laura Specker PY - 2018/03/31 Y2 - 2024/03/28 TI - What Does a Definition of Death Do? JF - Diametros JA - Diametros VL - 55 IS - 55 SE - Special Topic – Defining Death: Beyond Biology DO - 10.13153/diam.1176 UR - https://diametros.uj.edu.pl/diametros/article/view/1176 SP - 63-67 AB - In his article, “Defining Death: Beyond Biology,” John Lizza argues in favor of a civil definition of death, according to which the potential for consciousness and social interaction marks us as the “kind of being that we are.” In this commentary, I critically discuss this approach to the bioethical debate on the definition of death. I question whether Lizza’s account is based on a full recognition of the “practical, moral, religious, philosophical, and cultural considerations” at play in this debate. I further propose that a truly ethical debate on definitions of death ought to concentrate on how different definitions of death are used in diverse contexts – what definitions of death <em>do</em> – and focus less on who has the <em>right </em>definition of death for all situations. ER -