List of suicides in fiction
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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| + | "One of the earliest known associations between the [[media]] and [[suicide]] arose from Goethe's novel ''[[The Sorrows of Young Werther]]''. Soon after its publication in [[1774]], young men began to mimic the main character by dressing in yellow pants and blue jackets. In the novel, Werther shoots himself with a pistol after he is [[Unrequited love|rejected]] by the woman he loves, and shortly after its publication there were reports of young men using the same method to kill themselves in acts of hopelessness. This resulted in the book being [[banned]] in several places. Hence the term "Werther effect", used in the technical literature to designate [[copycat suicide]]s."--Sholem Stein | ||
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| This is a list of incidents of [[suicide]]–the intentional killing of one's self–depicted in fictional works, including movies, television series, anime and manga, comics, novels, etc. | This is a list of incidents of [[suicide]]–the intentional killing of one's self–depicted in fictional works, including movies, television series, anime and manga, comics, novels, etc. | ||
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| ==Suicides in fiction== | ==Suicides in fiction== | ||
| === A === | === A === | ||
| - | * [[Aegeus]], a character from Greek mythology, drowns himself after mistakenly believing that his son [[Theseus]] was dead<ref>http://www.temple.edu/classics/hippomythho.html</ref> | + | * [[Aegeus]], a character from Greek mythology, drowns himself after mistakenly believing that his son [[Theseus]] was dead |
| * [[Ajax (mythology)|Ajax the Great]], a character from the Greek mythology, stabs himself with a sword (his death is described by [[Sophocles]], [[Pindar]] and [[Ovid]]; the suicide is, however only implied in [[Homer]] when, in the [[Odyssey]], the ghost of Ajax refuses to speak to Odysseus in Hades)<ref>http://seco.glendale.edu/ceramics/suicideofajax.html</ref> | * [[Ajax (mythology)|Ajax the Great]], a character from the Greek mythology, stabs himself with a sword (his death is described by [[Sophocles]], [[Pindar]] and [[Ovid]]; the suicide is, however only implied in [[Homer]] when, in the [[Odyssey]], the ghost of Ajax refuses to speak to Odysseus in Hades)<ref>http://seco.glendale.edu/ceramics/suicideofajax.html</ref> | ||
| * [[Naoko Akagi]] (''[[Neon Genesis Evangelion]]''), jumps off a control tower after murdering [[Rei Ayanami|Rei I]]<ref>{{cite book |last=Drazen |first=Patrick |title=Anime Explosion! The What? Why? & Wow! of Japanese Animation |year=2002 | month=October |publisher=Stone Bridge Press |location=Berkeley, California |isbn=1-880656-72-8 |oclc=50898281 |page=132 }}</ref> | * [[Naoko Akagi]] (''[[Neon Genesis Evangelion]]''), jumps off a control tower after murdering [[Rei Ayanami|Rei I]]<ref>{{cite book |last=Drazen |first=Patrick |title=Anime Explosion! The What? Why? & Wow! of Japanese Animation |year=2002 | month=October |publisher=Stone Bridge Press |location=Berkeley, California |isbn=1-880656-72-8 |oclc=50898281 |page=132 }}</ref> | ||
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| ==See also== | ==See also== | ||
| + | * [[In fiction]] | ||
| * [[List of suicides]] | * [[List of suicides]] | ||
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"One of the earliest known associations between the media and suicide arose from Goethe's novel The Sorrows of Young Werther. Soon after its publication in 1774, young men began to mimic the main character by dressing in yellow pants and blue jackets. In the novel, Werther shoots himself with a pistol after he is rejected by the woman he loves, and shortly after its publication there were reports of young men using the same method to kill themselves in acts of hopelessness. This resulted in the book being banned in several places. Hence the term "Werther effect", used in the technical literature to designate copycat suicides."--Sholem Stein |
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This is a list of incidents of suicide–the intentional killing of one's self–depicted in fictional works, including movies, television series, anime and manga, comics, novels, etc.
Contents |
[edit]
Suicides in fiction
[edit]
A
- Aegeus, a character from Greek mythology, drowns himself after mistakenly believing that his son Theseus was dead
- Ajax the Great, a character from the Greek mythology, stabs himself with a sword (his death is described by Sophocles, Pindar and Ovid; the suicide is, however only implied in Homer when, in the Odyssey, the ghost of Ajax refuses to speak to Odysseus in Hades)<ref>http://seco.glendale.edu/ceramics/suicideofajax.html</ref>
- Naoko Akagi (Neon Genesis Evangelion), jumps off a control tower after murdering Rei I<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
- Misa Amane (Death Note), unknown cause. In the anime, she was last seen standing at the top of a very tall building; it is assumed that she jumped. In the manga it was suggested that she hanged herself.<ref>Death Note: How to Read 13. VIZ Media. 117.</ref>
- Princess Ashe ("Final Fantasy XII") Sorrow of kingdoms defeat. Method not specified.
- Alia Atreides (Dune), defenestration<ref>Herbert, Frank: "Children of Dune", page 394. Ace Books, 1987</ref>
- Duke Leto Atreides, (Dune), poison gas capsule
[edit]
B
- Lily Bart (The House of Mirth), overdoses on chloral hydrate (possible suicide)
- John Barton (Looking For Alibrandi), slit his wrists <ref>http://moore.portlandschools.org/pemaquid/aheatley2/reading%20reflection</ref>
- Jacqueline de Bellefort (Death on the Nile), shoots herself after killing her lover Simon to escape justice
- Georg Bendemann (The Judgment), threw himself off a bridge <ref>Gray, Richard T. "Zum Schiff." A Franz Kafka Encyclopedia. 2621. Westport, CT: Greenwood Publishing Group, 2005. Print</ref>
- Emma Bovary (Madame Bovary), ingestion of arsenic.<ref>Madame Bovary, Francis Steegmuller translation, page 360</ref>
- Sammy Bushey (Under the Dome), shoots herself
[edit]
C
- Jericho Cane (End of Days), impales himself on a sword
- Juliet Capulet (Romeo and Juliet), knife wounds<ref>Shakespeare, William. (1936). The Complete Works of Shakespeare, New York: Doubleday, pg 349.</ref>
- Castel (The Bourne Identity), defenestration
- Chloe (Buffy the Vampire Slayer), hanged herself after being convinced to by The First
- Cio-Cio-San (Madama Butterfly), seppuku;<ref>Libretto, Madama Butterfly</ref> and Kim in the contemporary adaptation Miss Saigon (gunshot)<ref>stageagent: Miss Saigon</ref>
- Mallorie "Mal" Cobb (Inception), jumping from heights<ref>[1]</ref>
- Richard Cory (Richard Cory), gunshot to the head<ref>Barnes and Noble: "The Treasury of American Poetry", page 327. Barnes and Noble Books, 1993</ref>
- Quentin Compson (The Sound and The Fury), drowning<ref>Faulkner, Williams. (1929). The Sound & The Fury, New York: Random House</ref>
[edit]
D
- Daisy (Girl, Interrupted), method was unknown in the novel<ref>Kaysen, Susanna: "Girl, Interrupted", page 35. Vintage Books, 1993</ref> while in the movie, she hangs herself and cuts her wrists
[edit]
E
- Julian English (Appointment in Samarra), carbon monoxide in garage, ch. 9
[edit]
F
[edit]
G
- Hedda Gabler (Hedda Gabler), shoots herself offstage<ref>Hedda Gabbler synopsis at gradesaver.com</ref>
- Godric (True Blood/Southern Vampire Mysteries novels), "meets the sun", which as a vampire is fatal
- Gullberg (The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets' Nest), shoots himself after shooting Galachenko
[edit]
H
- Heathcliff (Wuthering Heights) Hanged himself to be with his deceased love, Cathy.
- Ray Huizanga (Cell (novel)) shoots himself
[edit]
I
[edit]
J
- Javert (Les Misérables), jumped off bridge and drowned <ref>http://books.google.com/books?id=4MhcAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA418&lpg=PA418&dq=Javert+Suicide&source=bl&ots=H2L-IybP0y&sig=DYJAikRFxhMp6o2-QJmYi8WNtSc&hl=en&ei=17APTIbTG4H88AbJ67GBCQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=2&ved=0CBcQ6AEwATge#v=onepage&q=Javert%20Suicide&f=false</ref>
- John the Savage (Brave New World) hangs himself <ref>http://www.huxley.net/studyaid/index.html</ref>
- Dayna Jurgens (The Stand), smashes her head through a glass window and thrashes her head around so that the sharp edges of the glass cut open her jugular vein.
[edit]
K
- Anna Karenina (Anna Karenina), steps into the path of a train<ref>Anna Karenina summary at gradesaver.com</ref>
- Father Damien Karras (The Exorcist), defenestration.
- Katsumoto (The Last Samurai), seppuku
- Gabriel Kent (The Bill), jumped off the top of a building
- Lawrence Kutner (House), dies of a self-inflicted gunshot wound and is found in "Simple Explanation" by colleagues. <ref>Ausiello, Michael. "'House' exclusive: The shocking story behind last night's big death" Entertainment Weekly, 2009-04-07. Retrieved 2009-04-07.</ref><ref name=nydailynews>Hinckley, David, "Actor Kal Penn's death as 'House' character Dr. Lawrence Kutner shocks fans" New York Daily News, 2009-04-07. Retrieved on 2009-04-08.</ref>
- Yoji Kuramuto (Battle Royale), in the film, hangs himself alongside his girlfriend Yoshimi Yahagi
[edit]
L
- Harold Lauder (The Stand), shoots himself in the head.
- Leonard "Gomer Pyle" Lawrence (Full Metal Jacket), self-inflicted gunshot wound after murdering his commanding officer<ref>http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0093058/synopsis</ref>
- Su Lin (Enter the Dragon), stabs herself with a shard of glass.
- Willy Loman (Death of a Salesman), car crash<ref>Death of a Salesman, Bellmore-Merrick study guide</ref>
[edit]
M
- Lady Macbeth (Macbeth), method unspecified, "Who, as 'tis thought, by self and violent hands took off her life"<ref>Macbeth, Act 5, scene 8</ref>
- Lt. Col. Matthew Andrew Markinson (A Few Good Men), shoots himself
- Romeo Montague, (Romeo & Juliet), takes poison after finding Juliet whom he believed to be dead.<ref>Shakespeare, William. (1936). The Complete Works of Shakespeare, New York: Doubleday, pg 348.</ref>
- Darren Mullet (Tormented), hangs himself
[edit]
N
- Samuel Norton (The Shawshank Redemption) shoots himself
[edit]
O
- Sakura Ogawa (Battle Royale) throws herself off a cliff alongside Kazuhiko Yamamoto
- Ophelia (Hamlet), drowning (ambiguous)<ref>Shakespeare, William. (1936). The Complete Works of Shakespeare, New York: Doubleday, pg 770.</ref>
- Othello (Othello), stabs himself<ref>Shakespeare, William. (1936). The Complete Works of Shakespeare, New York: Doubleday, pg 979.</ref>
- Okonkwo (Things Fall Apart), hangs himself out of despair
[edit]
P
- Neil Perry (Dead Poet's Society), shoots himself
- Phoenix I, in the form of Jean Grey (Uncanny X-Men), telekinetically activates an energy cannon that disintegrates her.<ref>Claremont, Chris. Uncanny X-Men #137 (September 1980)</ref>
- Madelyne Pryor, mentally commits suicide by forcing her mind to shut down.<ref>Claremont, Chris. X-Factor #38 (March 1989).</ref>
[edit]
Q
[edit]
R
[edit]
S
- Yuko Sakaki (Battle Royale) jumps from a lighthouse
- Hannah Schmitz (The Reader)
- Shin (Hokuto no ken),Jumped from the peak of his tower
- Smerdyakov (The Brothers Karamazov), hanging<ref>The Brothers Karamazov, Constance Garnett translation, page 736</ref>
- Septimus Warren Smith (Mrs Dalloway), defenestration
- Holly Summers (No More Heroes), places a grenade in her mouth
- Svidrigailov (Crime and Punishment), gunshot to the head<ref>Crime and Punishment, Constance Garnett translation, page 440</ref>
[edit]
T
- General Tanz (The Night of the Generals), shoots himself
- Captain Clark Terrell (Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan), shoots himself
- Floria Tosca, in Puccini’s opera Tosca, jumps from castle rampart<ref>Tosca synopsis</ref>
[edit]
U
[edit]
V
[edit]
W
- Justice Lawrence Wargrave, (And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie), self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head after murdering nine people on an island
- Werther, in The Sorrows of Young Werther by Goethe and the subsequent opera by Massenet; gunshot to the head; the fictional suicide touched off a wave of copycat suicides in Europe<ref>Siebers, Tobin, The Werther effect: the esthetics of suicide.</ref>
- Dallas "Dally" Winston (The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton), suicide by police after robbing a grocery store
[edit]
X
[edit]
Y
- Yoshimi Yahagi (Battle Royale), in the film, hangs herself alongside Yuji Kuramuto.
- Kazuhiko Yamamoto (Battle Royale), throws himself off a cliff alongside Sakura Ogawa.
- Adam Yates (The Innocent), gunshot.
- Mary Alice Young in Desperate Housewives; gunshot to the head; the suicide enables the character to portray the role of narrator of the series from a dead point of view.
[edit]
Z
[edit]
See also
Unless indicated otherwise, the text in this article is either based on Wikipedia article "List of suicides in fiction" or another language Wikipedia page thereof used under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License; or on research by Jahsonic and friends. See Art and Popular Culture's copyright notice.
