What is a Death With Dignity?

Proponents of the legalization of assisted suicide often appeal to our supposed right to ‘‘die with dignity’ ’ to defend their case. I examine and assess different notions of ‘‘dignity’ ’ that are operating in many arguments for the legalization of assisted suicide, and I find them all to be deficient. I then consider an alternative conception of dignity that is based on Aristotle’s conception of the conditions on the best life. I conclude that, while such a conception of dignity fits best with our intuitions about the conditions under which a life has dignity, it supports the legalization of assisted suicide only under very limited circumstances