Death, dying, and the ethics of care - with Iris Parra Jounou

What can care ethics contribute to a better understanding of death, dying, and end-of-life care? What would a relational approach to assisted dying look like? And how should care be incorporated into public policy by local and national governments?These are some of the questions we explore in this episode, in conversation with Iris Parra Jounou. Iris is a researcher in care ethics and political philosophy, specialising in end-of-life care. She is an assistant professor in philosophy at the Autonomous University of Barcelona, in Catalonia, Spain, where she was awarded a PhD in 2025 for her thesis entitled ‘Dying in the Relaissance: End-of-Life Practices in a Caring Democracy’. Iris previously studied for bachelor’s degrees in both nursing and humanities, and for a Masters degree in contemporary thought and classical tradition. She is also a published poet and a musician.Iris has published a number of journal articles and book chapters on end-of-life care and assisted dying, and she also has the distinction of having translated key works by the leading American care ethicist Joan Tronto into Catalan. She a contributed a chapter on ‘a care ethics and aesthetics approach to stillbirth and late termination of pregnancy for foetal anomalies’ in the recently-published edited collection Care Aesthetics and the Arts. Iris has edited a new volume on Care Ethics and Public Health, which has been published, in the Peeters Ethics of Care series, since we recorded the episode.We discuss the following topics in this episode:Iris' personal and professional journey to studying the philosophy of care (02:35)Witnessing death and developing an interest in end-of-life care (06:24)Iris' introduction to feminist care ethics (10:55)How Iris came to interview Joan Tronto and translate her books into Catalan (16:22)A brief cultural history of death and dying (19:57)Towards 'an expressive-collaborative model of mortality' using care ethics (24:42)'Dying in the relaissance' (27:46)A relational approach to assisted dying (30:30)The ethical conflicts of implementing medical assistance in dying (34:34)Towards a patient-centred definition of unbearable suffering (39:05)Iris' forthcoming co-edited book on care ethics and public health (44:10)Towards a public ethics of care (47:30)Reflecting on stillbirth, care ethics and care aesthetics through the medium of a literary memoir (50:35)Iris' involvement in poetry and music (57:40)Iris' plans for further research and writing on care (01:01:14)Some of the writers and thinkers mentioned in the episodeNell NoddingsVirginia HeldCarol GilliganHelen KohlenFrans VosmanOlena HankivskyJudith ButlerMargaret Urban WalkerErica Borgstrom (see Episode 9)Ruth LevitasMiguel AbensourSean RileyDavid Rodríguez-AriasTxetxu AusínClaudia GamondiAnna StarobinetsLinks to Iris' some of academic writings in English'End-of-Life Narratives of Patients who Request Medical Assistance in Dying: A Qualitative Study Protocol''Causes for Conscientious Objection in Medical Aid in Dying: A Scoping Review''Care ethics in theory and practice: Joan C. Tronto in conversation with Iris Parra Jounou''For, against, and beyond: healthcare professionals’ positions on Medical Assistance in Dying in Spain''“Suffering Is a Hostage of Healthcare Professionals’ Authority”: Shifting to a Patient-Centered Definition''Look at Him: A care ethics and aesthetics approach to stillbirth and late termination of pregnancy for foetal abnormalities'Iris' translations of works by Joan TrontoQui se'n cuida? Democràcia i cura Poetry by IrisOrianaAl filo (audiopoem)Iris' research projectsINEDyTOPOyETICASYou can download a transcript of the episode by following this link to the Careful Thinking Substack.