Should Cosmetic Surgeons Be Influenced By Societys Social Norms As Illistrated In The Ethics Of Complicity By Margaret Olivia Little

A detailed Summary of Should Cosmetic Surgeons Be Influenced By Societys Social Norms As Illistrated In The Ethics Of Complicity By Margaret Olivia Little

A physician, as any other professional, has a job to do. Granted, the job does

entail the preservation of human life, a characteristic which holds great importance and

prestige in our society. But why should he/she also be burdened with the responsibility

of making society's moral decisions? A physician has no more responsibility for our

view of 'normal' than a fry jockey at McDonalds. Although Little's article does raise

some truths, I will argue that physicians, particularly cosmetic surgeons, should neither

be responsible for nor influenced by society's social norms when approached by a

patient requesting cosmetic surgery of any sort.

Little argues (with a typical Postmodernist's attitude) that "requests for cosmetic

surgery are often motivated by deep and genuine suffering . . . not from a desire for

beauty, but from a desire to end a distressing sense of alienation from some body part

or to escape incessant teasing" due to the "suspect norms of appearance" (Little,162,

163). Men and women alike are deceived into thinking they need these surgeries due

to the deep rooted norms within our society, similar to the way our largely male

dominated society has deep rooted itself into our understanding of

wrong if he/she will still perform the surgery? It is true that it can also be dangerous,

stating that it is not morally right for a woman to pursue cosmetic surgery simply to

states "now part of what is morally problematic about the third class of examples [the

In short, physicians, particularly cosmetic surgeons, should neither be

would be denied surgery by Little. I can see her reasoning for the black man - although

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Approximate Word count = 1488
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: Politics

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