Respond to each students post. Please respond by name.

Meghan wrote:
I feel that the primary stressor in David and Giovanni’s relationship is David himself. He so badly wants to be in love with Giovanni, but he just can’t let himself do it. As David stated “Giovanni’s face, which I had memorized so many mornings, noons, and nights, hardened before my eyes, began to give in secret places, began to crack. The light in the eyes became a glitter; the wide and beautiful brow began to suggest the skull beneath. The sensual lips turned inward, busy with the sorrow overflowing from his heart. It became a stranger’s face- or it made me so guilty to look on him that I wished it were a stranger’s face (Baldwin, pg 75)”. He looks back on their relationship and although he seems to be “murdering him” he can’t help but to love him. Although he knows its not right (for David) he can’t resist. He knows that Hella is coming back, but doesn’t want to be with her. He want’s Giovanni and I believe that is another cause for stress as he knows he’s going to leave him for her. At one point he had sex with a lady named Sue to forget about both of his significant others, but it did not work. “Sue was not Hella and she did not lessen my terror of what would happen when Hella came: she increased it, she made it more real than it had been before (Baldwin, pg100)”. David was scared about what was going to happen to his life and to everyone else’s. Although he tried to escape the thoughts they still followed him everywhere he went.

Baldwin, J. (2016). Giovannis room. New York: Alfred A. Knopf.

Grace wrote:

Euthanasia is the painless killing of a patient suffering from an incurable and painful disease or in an irreversible coma (dictionary.com). This intern makes me believe that certain circumstances warrant the need for euthanasia and I do feel that it is the patients choice! For example, if a patient is in the hospital dying from cancer that has attacked their whole body and they are in pain everyday, not being able to function or communicate much, and they express the need to hurry the dying process up with a medication, I do feel as though they have this right. I think it is much of a family issue when it comes down to it, because they do not want to see or hear their loved ones ready to give up the fight. Sometimes people can only do so much before they cant do it anymore. Another example would be if a person is doing alright now dying from a deadly disease, but in a short period of time they are in pain and suffering the choice to end their life early so, maybe his/her child does not have to see them in a vegetative state, is their option.

I do feel as though it is hard for a family member to call the shots for someone to be euthanized if they cannot speak for themselves. I think this is where the situations become hard and sticky. It comes down to everyone having their own rights, and if thats what a person wants to do if they met a certain criteria or requirement to be euthanized then that is their option.