Emile Durkheim’s analysis on suicide shaped our understanding of what it is and isn’t. He is credited for doing a methodological study on this social fact and studying the societal causes that contributed to the ongoing occurrence of his time. He argued that suicide does not stem from individual personalities but rather from social factors that put pressure on an individuals. During his time, Durkheim presented three different types of suicide that are executed because of societal pressure. He believed that each of these justify why people turn to suicide to escape the pressures of society. For the purpose of this blog, I will prove that although Durkheim did not publish his writings in the 21st century, his reasoning’s behind why people kill themselves still ring prevalent in today’s society. I will prove that not much has changed in the way people are manipulated by the forces of society to conform, or to protect what constitutes as morally right or wrong and how it pressures them to make the decision of suicide.
The first form of suicide is Anomic Suicide which is the result of lack of regulation of an individual by society. This type of suicide is often performed by individuals who feel lost or alone in society. Usually when society is on a rapid change, individuals find it impossible to keep up and turn to suicide as the last resort. An example of this type of suicide can be linked to the the story of Tyler Cleminiti back in 2011. Tyler, who was 18 at the time, was a freshman at Rutgers University in New Jersey who dormed with a stranger for the semester. Upon the reviewing and threatening of releasing of some photos and videos on Tyler’s personal computer by his roommate, Tyler felt the need to end his life. He jumped off the George Washing Bridge into the Hudson River and took his life. He left suicide notes and posted several things to his social media websites indicating that he had suicidal thoughts that stemmed for where he believed he fit in in society. Over the years, there has been an increase in suicide rates amongst teens and young adults that stem from the pressures of society and the need to be with the norm. This particular type of suicide acknowledges that this form of suicide isn’t based on how an individual feels about himself but about how society says you should feel about yourself.
The second type of suicide is Altruistic Suicide, which is enforced by a social force. An example can be seen in suicide bombers. Suicide bombers attach bombs to their bodies and detonate them. This causes the wiping out an entire group of people or community. With these acts, one often knows that they will sacrifice themselves for a specific cause (usually religious, psychological or social causes). An example would be the Tamil Tigers of Sri Lanks. This group is known for its attack on their enemies through suicide bombing. They are the first group to execute these type of bombings. They often attacked opposing religions and social groups. Another example would be the hijackers that crashed into the World Trade Center in 2001. People who commit suicide in this category often live in a society that puts pressure to be united as one in fear of infiltration. Everyone of that culture believes in the same political cause and religious sect and are willing to do whatever is necessary to defend their position in that particular fight, even if it means suicide.
The last is Egotistic Suicide, which happens when people feel detached from society and begin to question their role and position in society. This type of suicide is often normative in people who lose their jobs (through termination or retirement) or elderly people who feel they are no longer needed in society. An example of this would be the brutal murder suicide of a family in Los Angeles. After losing his job at a hospital, he went home and killed his wife, five children, and then himself. He left a note stating that with 5 children and no job, it was better to end his life as well as the life of his family. The termination from his job made him feel inferior in a society when you have to work in order to live in the times. This type of suicide is also found in people who lose love one due to divorce, death, etc and cannot mentally cope with the situation. An example of this can be seen in the case of a 6 year old who committed suicide because of his anger with the divorce of his parents. After finding the child hanging from a belt and conducting a further investigation, it came out that the child was distraught over it and found that this was the only way he could cope with this.
Overall, the sociological reasoning behind suicide is just as reliable as the psychological reasoning behind why people perform the social act of suicide. Often the copping mechanism of societal problems force one to take the necessary measurements, one being suicide. Durkheim maps out all three categories and why they are regulate by society.
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2010/sep/30/tyler-clementi-gay-student-suicide
http://www.cnn.com/2009/CRIME/01/27/family.dead/index.html?iref=hpmostpop
http://www.argusobserver.com/news/year-old-boy-s-death-ruled-suicide/article_996c8218-eb12-11e2-a7ad-0019bb2963f4.html
The first form of suicide is Anomic Suicide which is the result of lack of regulation of an individual by society. This type of suicide is often performed by individuals who feel lost or alone in society. Usually when society is on a rapid change, individuals find it impossible to keep up and turn to suicide as the last resort. An example of this type of suicide can be linked to the the story of Tyler Cleminiti back in 2011. Tyler, who was 18 at the time, was a freshman at Rutgers University in New Jersey who dormed with a stranger for the semester. Upon the reviewing and threatening of releasing of some photos and videos on Tyler’s personal computer by his roommate, Tyler felt the need to end his life. He jumped off the George Washing Bridge into the Hudson River and took his life. He left suicide notes and posted several things to his social media websites indicating that he had suicidal thoughts that stemmed for where he believed he fit in in society. Over the years, there has been an increase in suicide rates amongst teens and young adults that stem from the pressures of society and the need to be with the norm. This particular type of suicide acknowledges that this form of suicide isn’t based on how an individual feels about himself but about how society says you should feel about yourself.
The second type of suicide is Altruistic Suicide, which is enforced by a social force. An example can be seen in suicide bombers. Suicide bombers attach bombs to their bodies and detonate them. This causes the wiping out an entire group of people or community. With these acts, one often knows that they will sacrifice themselves for a specific cause (usually religious, psychological or social causes). An example would be the Tamil Tigers of Sri Lanks. This group is known for its attack on their enemies through suicide bombing. They are the first group to execute these type of bombings. They often attacked opposing religions and social groups. Another example would be the hijackers that crashed into the World Trade Center in 2001. People who commit suicide in this category often live in a society that puts pressure to be united as one in fear of infiltration. Everyone of that culture believes in the same political cause and religious sect and are willing to do whatever is necessary to defend their position in that particular fight, even if it means suicide.
The last is Egotistic Suicide, which happens when people feel detached from society and begin to question their role and position in society. This type of suicide is often normative in people who lose their jobs (through termination or retirement) or elderly people who feel they are no longer needed in society. An example of this would be the brutal murder suicide of a family in Los Angeles. After losing his job at a hospital, he went home and killed his wife, five children, and then himself. He left a note stating that with 5 children and no job, it was better to end his life as well as the life of his family. The termination from his job made him feel inferior in a society when you have to work in order to live in the times. This type of suicide is also found in people who lose love one due to divorce, death, etc and cannot mentally cope with the situation. An example of this can be seen in the case of a 6 year old who committed suicide because of his anger with the divorce of his parents. After finding the child hanging from a belt and conducting a further investigation, it came out that the child was distraught over it and found that this was the only way he could cope with this.
Overall, the sociological reasoning behind suicide is just as reliable as the psychological reasoning behind why people perform the social act of suicide. Often the copping mechanism of societal problems force one to take the necessary measurements, one being suicide. Durkheim maps out all three categories and why they are regulate by society.
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2010/sep/30/tyler-clementi-gay-student-suicide
http://www.cnn.com/2009/CRIME/01/27/family.dead/index.html?iref=hpmostpop
http://www.argusobserver.com/news/year-old-boy-s-death-ruled-suicide/article_996c8218-eb12-11e2-a7ad-0019bb2963f4.html