My Life to Live-Or Not by Angela Desarro

In “My Life to Live-or Not”, Angela Desarro argues that terminally ill patients should have the right to choose how and when they will die. Desarro talks about a woman named Debbie that had terminal ovarian cancer. Debbie was in an enormous amount of intolerable pain and agony. “She also believed that it should be up to her, under these conditions, to decide when and how she should die” (173). While seeking relief, Debbie discovered euthanasia. Euthanasia is a practice of painlessly killing patients suffering from a terminal, incurable, painful disease or an irreversible coma. Desarro explains that “the time has come for a nationwide law legalizing this practice under specific provisions and regulations” (173). While Desarro is explaining Debbie's story, she also gives facts about laws that prohibit euthanasia. On the other hand, she also talks about how some states do have laws in favor of euthanasia and how it had helped several people. She states how the law wasn’t abused in any way or form and again how euthanasia should be distributed throughout the nation.

Even though Desarro clearly shows a great amount of unity in her writing, she could definitely clear up her links between her ideas and support. Desarro says, "A doctor administered a drug and she died. It was a hidden, secret act" (173). She is stating two different ideas without any flow or support between the two. Giving more details and description could help a reader visualize and understand Desarro’s points. Some people might not know what euthanasia is, so when you introduce an idea like that, being a little bit more descriptive could help clarify for a reader what it actually is from more than just a generalized stand point. In Desarro’s concluding sentence, she informs us that “Numerous people have benefited from that law; it was not abused. It, or a similar form, should be enacted nationwide” (173). If her statement was more coherent, her concluding sentence would have much more flow, and would be easier to comprehend. Having a smooth flow is important when transitioning between topics because for a reader, it is easier to understand and connect to a piece of writing. Using transitional terms throughout her paragraph would make it more smooth and easier to read. On the other hand, Desarro stayed on topic and at the same time switching back and forth between a woman’s real life story and factual information. That is very impressive and makes it easy for someone to agree with legalizing euthanasia. Transitioning between Debbie's story and the stated facts, she states, “She also believed that it should be up to her, under these conditions, to decide when and how she should die. Laws in most places prohibit terminally ill patients from choosing death and physicians from assisting them” (Desarro 173). It is very appealing to me that she fits Debbie’s story and real life information together