Object of fascination and fantasy, the female body can be idealized, reified or shrouded. "It is we who make women what they are worth and that is why they are worthless", proclaimed Mirabeau in the days of the Enlightenment, to which Aragon later replied: "Woman is the future of Man". The ambiguities of the female body are therein exposed. This work examines the relationship between the female body and biomedicine. Many possibilities are offered to women through biomedical techniques: from assistance to procreate (with assisted reproduction) to refusal to do so (contraception, voluntary sterilization, termination of pregnancy); to be informed of genetic predispositions (through the use of available genetic tests); or to improve their physical appearance with cosmetic surgery. But a recurrent question arises: with its rapid progress and its extreme medicalization of the body, can biomedicine liberate women? Or rather, given the risks of the commodification of the body or its parts, is it not a source of exploitation ?The authors of this work, jurists, anthropologists, philosophers, sociologists and doctors, have explored these questions. The contributions from nineteen countries in this international multidisciplinary study analyse the reality of the amazing developments of biomedicine on the female body. Numerous systems are compared for the first time; European, African, North and South American, but also Chinese and Japanese. Beyond highlighting differences, and identifying similarities in the development of "enhancement medicine", the objective of this work is ultimately to show the complexity surrounding the question of a woman's freedom over her body and the extent to which this is limited by the State.

The Female Body: A Journey Through Law, Culture and Medicine

"The book of life is the supreme book that we can neither close nor reopen at will."This quotation from Lamartine, the French poet, once a perfect illustration of the end of life in bygone societies, can no longer be said to apply. In fact, today, in one out of two cases in our modern societies, it is the medical team who closes this book without any intention of cutting life short. Generally, however, the physicians do not make this decision alone. While a competent patient increasingly participates in medical decisions, including when it's a matter of life or death, those nearest to him (usually the family but not always) endorse this responsibility once he becomes incapable of expressing his wishes. Many questions surround not only this concept of « nearest and dearest », or "loved ones", but also their roles and legitimacy. Whether they act as the patient's legal representative, authorised agent or trustee, or if they are stripped of all legal power, will the « loved one » be simply consulted by the caregivers on the presumed wishes of the patient regarding end-of-life choices? Or must they guarantee him a genuine right of self-determination? To this end, will they be granted a right of information only about the patient's condition, or even access to his medical records? Will their role be affected by the existence of living wills drawn up by the patient in question ?The outcome of debates between legal experts and physicians, philosophers and sociologists from seventeen countries, the chapters in this book analyse the current status and role of these relatives (and non- relatives) close to the patient at the end of life. Numerous European national laws are thus compared and are also benchmarked against other practices, in North and South America, in Africa and in some Asian countries. Beyond the legal, cultural and ethical differences that clearly separate these various traditions, a recurrent question arises: more than providing paternalistic protection, does the "loved one" not always have to ensure respect for what « their patient » would have wanted, thus guaranteeing up to the end of his life a basic right, namely his decision-making autonomy? If this book demonstrates the difficulty of such a task in different contexts, it also attempts to pave the way to a more humanistic approach across cultures to advocate respect for the patient at the very end of his life.

Families and End-of-Life Treatment Decisions - An International Perspective

Although adolescence cannot be said to be a medical condition, and although most adolescents are healthy, some do become ill. But the adolescent is not a patient like any other...Today, the age of majority is set in mostjurisdictions at the age of 18 years, but in the context of medical treatment, many countries do recognise a certain level of autonomy (to a greater or lesser extent) of adolescents who are deemed to be mature. However, the extent of this autonomy raises many questions. Is the consent of the adolescent required, along with that of the parents, before any intervention may take place ? Do they have a right of veto? Is their consent alone enough? Are they recognised as having the right to take part in medical trials, the right to refuse necessary treatment...? These and many other questions are at the heart of this multidisciplinary and international study, which is the fruit of reflection and discussion between lawyers, philosophers, sociologists and child psychologists during the 2nd Workshop of the International Academic Network on Bioethics. The issues raised go well beyond law because they engender questions of the individuality of the adolescent and her ability to make choices when faced with illness and even her own death. Despite the complexity and depth of the subject, the chapters in this volume cleariy reveal the status of the adolescent in medical decisionmaking, in sixteen different countries. Despite obvious differences between the systems studied, the one thing that is clear is the graduai recognition of the adolescent's growing autonomy in medical decisionmaking which is not always expressly provided for in legislation. Such an evolution is hardly surprising at a time when the distinction between adolescence and adulthood is becoming Iess certain for many. Created in 2007, the IANB's objective is to promote research through collaboration between academic representatives from different countries and cultures, ail specialists in the field of biomedicine. Based upon a comparative approach of different legal systems, the work of the group analyses social choices in biomedicine through the different lenses of ethics, anthropology, philosophy and sociology. In this way, their research feeds into the elaboration and development of international regulation of biomedical practices and incidentally on achieving the balance between the respect for different cultures and the move towards a certain universality, supporting the harmonisation of laws. This new collection will therefore be indispensable for anyone seeking to understand the social implications of bioethics.

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