HOW GAY MEN PREPARE FOR DEATH

Front matter

Se ee

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How Gay Men Prepare for Death The Dying Business

Contents

List of Tables

Acknowledgements

2. Wills and Beneficiary Decisions 3. Managing Physical and Mental 4. Euthanasia and Afterlife Beliefs

Chapter 1: Affective and Intimate Lives

This gives some of the background to decision-making by examining the nature of relationships that the participants had formed in the context of greater acceptance of queer relationships and marriage equality legislation as well as their birth families and current families. It describes how many were in couple relationships and of these what proportion were in common-law (or de facto) relationships, civil partnership, civil union or were gay married as a means of understanding in later chapters their beneficiary decisions, appointment of executors and powers of attorney.

Chapter 2: Wills and Beneficiary Decisions

The focus of this chapter is on will-writing and decisions concerning beneficiaries. Particular attention is paid to whether participants preferred family members, partners or friends when choosing executors and beneficiaries and their reasons for doing so. Motivation for benefactions such as altruism and social solidarity are also considered.

Chapter 3: Managing Physical and Mental End of Life

Decisions concerning advance care and power of attorney are investigated in this chapter. A relatively new end-of-life instrument, the advance care was in practice in most of the jurisdictions from which the participants were drawn, as was the long-established legal instrument, power of attorney or its

Introduction 7 equivalent. Again the focus is on the extent to which participants chose family members over partners or friends to manage their advance care or act at their attorney.

Chapter 4: Euthanasia and Afterlife Beliefs

Participants were prompted towards the end of the interview to discuss beliefs concerning euthanasia on the one hand and life after death on the other hand, and thus the focus of this chapter. Their views on euthanasia are examined in the context of assisted suicide and dying with dignity services and for what they reveal about end-of-life suffering and the notion of the ‘good death’.