Knowing When to say Goodbye: Final Exit and Suicide in the Elderly/Comments on “Knowing When to say Goodbye”

The release of “Final Exit” caused fear that the book’s methods might be used by people such as the nonterminal elderly who have decided to end their lives. This short story about an elderly couple that commits double suicide explores rational suicide by using fiction rather than a bioethical approach. It is meant to highlight the ambiguities surrounding elder suicide & reminds people to evaluate this issue in the context of individual life experiences. Comments by McIntosh & Richman follow.