La “buona morte”: analisi del profilo storico e ruolo delle cure palliative nell’accompagnamento di fine vita

This research focuses on the link between the concept of “good death” and the notion of euthanasia, words connected to each other from an etymological point of view but which differ in meaning and historical evolution. The analysis of the sources relating to “good death” has shown three main research macro-groups: one relating to the concept of “good death” in the ancient world from the classical antiquity to the late imperial age; one relative to the link between “good death” and palliative care and, lastly, the role that consolation plays in the accompaniment of the terminally ill. These reference passages have been chosen on the basis of three useful tools in the setting of Greek-Latin Philology and of ancient Christian Literature: the Thesaurus Linguae Graecae, the Thesaurus Linguae Latinae and the Bibleworks. The analysis of these passages has revealed that the notion of euthanasia in classical Greek and Latin conveyed a concept very different from the modern one. Two fundamental concepts were observed: that of “good death” and that of suicide. In Antiquity the three concepts of euthanasia, “good death” and suicide do not appear any different to today, on the contrary, the notions of euthanasia and “good death” permeate each other and euthanasia, as well as suicide often appear in the sources analyzed as “good death”. The point of view held by the professionals operating in the sector, which has been investigated in the second chapter in the form of an interview, reveals the importance of palliative care in accompanying the suffering person in the final stage of life. The third and final chapter, investigates the role of consolation both in Christian literature (The Bible; Greek and Latin Church Fathers) as well as in the concrete reality of care giving today through the analysis of the results of a survey carried out on caregivers of ten Italian hospices.