I had stumbled into a blog yesterday afternoon. There was a post on happiness index and suicide rate country-wise. It had lot of interesting statistics (like China is the only country where women outnumber men in committing suicide etc. etc.).
Yesterday past midnight, I randomly picked up a scene to watch, from one of my favorite movies Annie Hall before going to bed. It was a stand up comedy scene where Woody Allen says "I was depressed at that time. I was in analysis. I was suicidal as a matter of fact and would have killed myself, but I was in analysis with a strict Freudian, and, if you kill yourself, they make you pay for the sessions you miss."!
Traveling by cab today morning, I was reading Godfather. It was the chapter where Sonny gets killed. And Lucy Mancini tries to commit suicide by taking an overdose of pills.
Its a strange coincidence that the topic "suicide" appeared from 3 different sources in less than 24 hours. I had a quick breakfast in the morning and started wikipediaing on this topic. Wikipedia had a very elaborate article on this topic. The details were overwhelming:
I just wondered how the mode of suicide is so culture-specific. One of my American clients used to say that he would slash his wrists if he is asked to work on a very slow laptop. I just wondered how to translate "slash my wrists" to Kannada. And then I realized that slashing the wrists and lying in the bath tub is so much of a western phenomenon and I guess its the most common type of suicide there, along with taking poison and using a gun I guess. I have never heard an incident where an Indian has tried to commit suicide by slashing his wrists. We seem to be more of hanging, drowning and self-immolation types. Can you give an equivalent translation in English for "Naanu Kere no Bhaavi no nodkotheeni" or "Naanu seeme enne surkondu saththogtheeni"? Nah!
I personally believe that suicide is a stupid thing. Whatever the reason be - personal, political, honor (like those samurais) - it is stupid. I think people who realize that anything in life is very trivial compared to life itself will never even think of committing a suicide.
On a lighter note, if suicide is considered a horrendous crime (as some religions and countries believe), can suicide survivors be killed for that offense? :)
Yesterday past midnight, I randomly picked up a scene to watch, from one of my favorite movies Annie Hall before going to bed. It was a stand up comedy scene where Woody Allen says "I was depressed at that time. I was in analysis. I was suicidal as a matter of fact and would have killed myself, but I was in analysis with a strict Freudian, and, if you kill yourself, they make you pay for the sessions you miss."!
Traveling by cab today morning, I was reading Godfather. It was the chapter where Sonny gets killed. And Lucy Mancini tries to commit suicide by taking an overdose of pills.
Its a strange coincidence that the topic "suicide" appeared from 3 different sources in less than 24 hours. I had a quick breakfast in the morning and started wikipediaing on this topic. Wikipedia had a very elaborate article on this topic. The details were overwhelming:
- Men outnumber women in committing suicide.
- Women attempt suicide more than men.
- Caucasians die by suicide more often than Africans and Hispanics.
- Suicides happen more during summer and spring, though its a common misconception that suicides happen more during winter etc etc.
I just wondered how the mode of suicide is so culture-specific. One of my American clients used to say that he would slash his wrists if he is asked to work on a very slow laptop. I just wondered how to translate "slash my wrists" to Kannada. And then I realized that slashing the wrists and lying in the bath tub is so much of a western phenomenon and I guess its the most common type of suicide there, along with taking poison and using a gun I guess. I have never heard an incident where an Indian has tried to commit suicide by slashing his wrists. We seem to be more of hanging, drowning and self-immolation types. Can you give an equivalent translation in English for "Naanu Kere no Bhaavi no nodkotheeni" or "Naanu seeme enne surkondu saththogtheeni"? Nah!
I personally believe that suicide is a stupid thing. Whatever the reason be - personal, political, honor (like those samurais) - it is stupid. I think people who realize that anything in life is very trivial compared to life itself will never even think of committing a suicide.
On a lighter note, if suicide is considered a horrendous crime (as some religions and countries believe), can suicide survivors be killed for that offense? :)
Comments
I think most people who threaten to commit suicide use it as a blackmail technique.
Suicide must be the ultimate form of escapism!