suicide [Lat.,=self-killing], the deliberate taking of one's own life. Suicide may be compulsory, prescribed by custom or enjoined by the authorities, usually as an alternative to death at the hands of others, or it may be committed for personal motives. Depending on the time and place, it may be regarded as a heroic deed or condemned by religious and civil authorities.

Compulsory suicide may be performed out of loyalty to a dead master or spouse. Examples of this are suttee in India and the similar behavior expected of the dead emperor's favorite courtiers in ancient China. Such practices, now largely extinct, undoubtedly derived from the ancient and widespread custom of immolating servants and wives on the grave of a chief or noble (see funeral customs funeral customs, rituals surrounding the death of a human being and the subsequent disposition of the corpse. Such rites may serve to mark the passage of a person from life into death, to secure the welfare of the dead, to comfort the living, and to protect the
..... Click the link for more information. ). Self-murder may also be enjoined for the welfare of the group; among pre-industrial peoples, the elderly who could no longer contribute to their own subsistence are an example. Finally, suicide may be offered to a favored few as an alternative to execution, as among the feudal Japanese gentry (see hara-kiri hara-kiri (här`ə-kēr`ē, hăr`ə–) [Jap.
..... Click the link for more information. ), the Greeks (see Socrates Socrates (sŏk`rətēz), 469–399 B.C., Greek philosopher of Athens.
..... Click the link for more information. ), the Roman nobility, and high-ranking military officers, such as Erwin Rommel Rommel, Erwin (ĕr`vēn rôm`əl), 1891–1944, German field marshal.
..... Click the link for more information. , accused of treason. In traditional Japanese society, in certain situations suicide was seen as the appropriate moral course of action for a man who otherwise faced the loss of his honor. Self-killing may be practiced by peoples lacking a codified law of punishment; the Trobriand Islanders hurled themselves ceremonially from the tops of palm trees after a serious public loss of face. In these situations, the line between social pressure and personal motivation begins to blur.

In less traditional societies the causes of suicide are more difficult to establish. The problem has been approached from two different angles: the sociological, which stresses social pressures and the importance of social integration, and the psychoanalytic, which centers on the driving force of guilt and anxiety and the inverting of aggressive impulses. Recent studies have done much to dispel some of the myths surrounding suicide, such as the beliefs that suicidal tendencies are inherited, that suicidal tendencies cannot be reversed, and that persons who announce their intention to commit suicide will not carry out the threat.

Self-killing is expressly condemned by Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, and attempts are punishable by law in certain countries. Suicide was a felony in 11th-century England because the self-murderer was considered to have broken the bond of fealty, and the suicide's property was forfeited to the king. Suicides were interred on public highways with a stake driven through the heart; this practice was observed as late as 1823. In 1961, Great Britain abolished criminal penalties for attempting to commit suicide. Very few U.S. states still list suicide as a crime, but most states have laws against helping someone to commit suicide. A right-to-die movement has supported the principle of doctor-assisted suicide in certain cases (see euthanasia euthanasia (y
..... Click the link for more information. ).

In the United States, suicide is the ninth leading cause of death. About twice as many women attempt suicide as men, but out of roughly 31,000 successful suicides in 1996, about four fifths were by men. A striking characteristic, which has concerned and baffled public health workers, has been the increase in suicides in the age group 10 to 14 years. In the period from 1980 to 1995, suicides in this age group rose from 139 to 330 per 100,000 individuals. Worldwide, suicide rates have been notably high in Russia, Hungary, and Finland.

Bibliography

See E. Durkheim, Suicide (1897, tr. 1951); R. Cavan, Suicide (1928, repr. 1965); E. Stengel, Suicide and Attempted Suicide (1965); J. Douglas, The Social Meanings of Suicide (1967); E. Shneidman, ed., Essays in Self-Destruction (1967); M. L. Farber, The Theory of Suicide (1968); E. A. Grollman, Suicide (1970); A. Alvarez, The Savage God (1972); J. Choron, Suicide (1972); D. Lester, Why People Kill Themselves (1972); G. Colt, The Enigma of Suicide (1991); P. Singer, Rethinking Life and Death (1994); H. Hendin, Suicide in America (new and enl. ed. 1995); K. R. Jamison, Night Falls Fast (1999).

suicide

Act of intentionally taking one's own life. Suicide may have psychological origins such as the difficulty of coping with depression or other mental disorders; it may be motivated by the desire to test the affection of loved ones or to punish their lack of support with the burden of guilt. It may also stem from social and cultural pressures, especially those that tend to increase isolation, such as bereavement or estrangement. Attitudes toward suicide have varied in different ages and cultures; convicted criminals in ancient Greece were permitted to take their own lives, and the Japanese custom of seppuku (also called hara-kiri), or self-disembowelment, allowed samurai to commit ritual suicide as a way of protecting honour and demonstrating loyalty. Jews committed suicide rather than submit to ancient Roman conquerors or crusading knights who intended to force their conversion. In the 20th century, members of new religious movements, notably the Peoples Temple and Heaven's Gate, committed mass suicide. Buddhist monks and nuns have also committed sacrificial suicide by self-immolation as a form of social protest. Japan's use of kamikaze suicide bombers during World War II was a precursor to the suicide bombing that emerged in the late 20th century as a form of terrorism, particularly among Islamic extremists. Suicide, however, is generally condemned by Islam, Judaism, and Christianity, and attempts to commit suicide are still punishable by law in many countries. Some communities around the world have sought to legalize physician-assisted suicide for the terminally ill. Euthanasia was legalized in The Netherlands in 2001 and Belgium in 2002, and it is openly practiced in Colombia. Since the 1950s suicide-prevention organizations have been established in many countries, with telephone hot lines serving as a source of readily available counseling.

Suicide

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Bibliography

suicide

Suicide