The Definition of Death

Our changing moral and legal attitudes towards end-of-life decisions and an increasing recognition of cultural diversity (many Orthodox Jews, for example, do not accept loss of brain function as a valid measure of death) have also challenged the apparent social concensus about death. This text offers a comprehensive review of the clinical, philosophical and public policy implications of our effort to redefine the change in status from living person to corpse. The book is the result of a collaboration among internationally recognized scholars from the fields of medicine, philosophy, social science, law and religious studies. Throughout, the contributors struggle to reconcile inconsistencies and gaps in our traditional understanding of death and to respond to the public's concern that, in the determination of death under current policies, patients' interests may be compromised by the demand for organ retrieval.