Suicide: an Archetypal Perspective

The following is a brief excerpt from a larger study on the analysis of the archetypal patterns of suicide.2 My intention with this sensitive work is to explore the complexities of suicide, not as a form of tourism, but as a pilgrimage, with respect for those who have chosen this path and the loved ones that remained as witnesses. A review of mythological accounts of suicide, ancient and current histories of suicide, the patterns in specific populations where growth of suicide is currently unfolding, and the mechanisms and chosen places of suicide are presented. The depth and breadth of the knowledge base of past suicides that is currently accessible suggests that suicide symbolizes different things for different people. Nevertheless, it remains the most private act of independence one could choose. The various paths into and out of suicide are laden with symbols and images that are as dense and sticky as a silken spider web, suggesting a core archetypal nature of suicide that indeed is a threshold where one chooses to leave life on one side and enter the field of death on the other.