Being Mortal

pick one option for writing.

option 1) “Hope is not a plan, but hope is our plan” (Gawande 172).
Explain the assumptions and commitments of the modern medical system
that Gawande is criticizing when he makes this claim. What is his criticism
of them? In discussing his criticism, be sure to explain both the harms to
the individual and to society. Do you find Gawande’s criticism compelling?
Why or why not?

Option 2) Gawande examines the history of the modern nursing home in order to
try to explain the guiding principles under which they operate. He then
goes on to describe a number of experiments in providing care to an aging
population that aim to serve the needs of this population better than nursing homes do. Explain Gawande’s criticism of the modern nursing home.
What does it prioritize and what does it fail to do for its residents? Choose
one of his experiments and explain how it strives to do better. What ills
does it aim to correct? Finally, do you agree or disagree with Gawande’s
assessment?

Teacher’s Assessment:
your essay should be about 4-6 pages in length. my policy
is to grade you on the basis of whether you have successfully presented and
defended your claims, not on whether you’ve written “enough.”
Your grade will depend on whether you have (1) demonstrated understanding
of the concepts, theories, and arguments developed in class, (2) thoughtfully
analyzed one or more dimensions of the case in terms of those concepts, (3)
considered some of the moral ambiguities of the case, and (4) minimized the
spelling, syntactic, and grammatical errors in your essay. In short, I’m looking
for a thoughtful and critical response to the case.