So you may have already heard that suicide is often accused of being a selfish act, particularly because it hurts those who are left behind. So I want to examine whether those accusations hold any truth, trying to defend suicide at first.
The first idea that I want to discuss, is that I think that suicide has a difference from other "selfish" acts and it has to do with the terminality of the act. You see, when you perform a typical selfish act, there are consequences, that can be experienced by the person who commits the act. For example, if someone murders someone else, they then afterwards have to face the consequence of their actions, which is that they murdered another person, which can then cause immense guilt to the person, and the fear of living with guilt may be the reason why someone would not perform the act of murder in the first place. So the idea is that the person does not avoid the act because of the act itself, but because of the living condition of guilt that follows the act. On the other hand, in suicide, the person who commits the act does not have to face the consequences of their actions and there's no guilt afterwards. Which may lead good people who would normally not do harm to others, to commit suicide. So even if a third person perceives the act as selfish, because they're able to see the consequences of the actions, the person who commits the act has a different perspective that allows them to commit the act even if it causes harm to others. So this take has a bit to do with the idea of psychological egoism, which is the view that every action is motivated by self-interest, even the altruistic acts. Basically, someone does an altruistic act because it feels good, not for the altruistic act itself. So true altruism doesn't actually exist. And also someone avoids an evil act because it feels bad, not because of the evil act itself.
It's a view that is hard to refute. Humans are biological organisms who are driven by desire. Ultimately we do what feels good and avoid what feels bad. If you add a deterministic point of view on this, it makes sense. But psychological egoism isn't enough to prove my initial point. The question comes down to what motivates people and determines their psychological state prior to the act. The consequences themselves or the idea of the consequences? Or rather, the idea of the consequences or the idea of living with the consequences and the guilt that comes with it? To make sure that my point makes sense and that is not a product of huge mental gymnastics that my mentally ill brain produced, i thought about the case of someone who is terminally ill and his death is anticipated and doesn't take care of his last duties, such as taking care of some financial issues or making a will before they die, and leaving their relatives and children in a hard place. It is a case in which, similarly to suicide, you don't experience the consequences of your actions/inactions because, similarly to suicide, the person's life ends. So the question is, would you consider that person selfish? And the answer from most would be, yes. The person should've taken care of his last duties and make sure that his relatives and children are gonna be ok. If that is the case, is there anything that could distinguish this scenario from suicide, that would make suicide more justifiable? First of all, in this scenario, there is the anticipated death, which leaves time for the person to think about the consequences of not taking care of his last duties, creating whats called anticipatory guilt, even if he's not gonna live with the consequences. So it seems that people are motivated by the idea of the consequences, not by the idea of living with consequences. But with suicide, the anticipation of death may be different, as death is not guaranteed, as the person can choose whether they'll die or not at the end of the day. This may allow the suicidal person to distract themselves from the consequences of their actions because they know that they can just not do the action. So maybe the suicidal person goes back and forth whether they want to live or die, and wait for an impulsive moment to take action. However, the suicidal person does take preparations before the action knowing well that they bring them closer to the action, often puts themselves in a place that could initiate an impulsive action, and sometimes they set dates to commit the action, which creates the anticipation and gives time to reflect on the consequences. So from that perspective, a suicidal person is just as accountable as a person who is anticipating death and doesn't take care of their responsibilities, unless if suicide is done on impulse and the preparation in a blurred state of mind. Otherwise, the anticipatory guilt should stop the suicidal person for going forward with the preparation and with the action. So my initial point has been proven wrong and suicide is indeed, selfish.
Another reason that disproves my initial point is the fact that the belief that suicide is selfish is successfully preventing people from suicide, which proves that people are able to reflect of the consequences and not take the action.
Another thought experiment that i made is that of an extreme case of a person who is suicidal, and experiences intense guilt for his suicidal idealisations, which in result causes them to commit suicide so that they can escape the guilt. This is paradoxical, cause you cannot consider the person selfish, because they collapse under the weight of their noble guilt. It also shows that suicide is the ultimate escape. For example, if a person commits suicide due to personal suffering, with suicide they end both their suffering and their guilt for the act. Which again shows that a noble person might still commit suicide. But I still feel like this is a stretch.
Just a disclaimer, when im saying the word selfish, i dont nessesarily mean that its not justifiable. A selfish act could be justifiable in some cases. If someone's suffering is too much then suicide might be justifiable, even though its selfish. When I say selfish I mean any act that benefits the person who performs the act but harms others. The word selfish typically holds negative connotation because it implies that the act is not justifiable. I don't mean it that way. The purpose of this post is not to shame or guilt-trip suicidal people. The purpose of this post is to examine the nature of suicide in a fair, unbiased and honest way and spark discussion. about the topic.
The first idea that I want to discuss, is that I think that suicide has a difference from other "selfish" acts and it has to do with the terminality of the act. You see, when you perform a typical selfish act, there are consequences, that can be experienced by the person who commits the act. For example, if someone murders someone else, they then afterwards have to face the consequence of their actions, which is that they murdered another person, which can then cause immense guilt to the person, and the fear of living with guilt may be the reason why someone would not perform the act of murder in the first place. So the idea is that the person does not avoid the act because of the act itself, but because of the living condition of guilt that follows the act. On the other hand, in suicide, the person who commits the act does not have to face the consequences of their actions and there's no guilt afterwards. Which may lead good people who would normally not do harm to others, to commit suicide. So even if a third person perceives the act as selfish, because they're able to see the consequences of the actions, the person who commits the act has a different perspective that allows them to commit the act even if it causes harm to others. So this take has a bit to do with the idea of psychological egoism, which is the view that every action is motivated by self-interest, even the altruistic acts. Basically, someone does an altruistic act because it feels good, not for the altruistic act itself. So true altruism doesn't actually exist. And also someone avoids an evil act because it feels bad, not because of the evil act itself.
It's a view that is hard to refute. Humans are biological organisms who are driven by desire. Ultimately we do what feels good and avoid what feels bad. If you add a deterministic point of view on this, it makes sense. But psychological egoism isn't enough to prove my initial point. The question comes down to what motivates people and determines their psychological state prior to the act. The consequences themselves or the idea of the consequences? Or rather, the idea of the consequences or the idea of living with the consequences and the guilt that comes with it? To make sure that my point makes sense and that is not a product of huge mental gymnastics that my mentally ill brain produced, i thought about the case of someone who is terminally ill and his death is anticipated and doesn't take care of his last duties, such as taking care of some financial issues or making a will before they die, and leaving their relatives and children in a hard place. It is a case in which, similarly to suicide, you don't experience the consequences of your actions/inactions because, similarly to suicide, the person's life ends. So the question is, would you consider that person selfish? And the answer from most would be, yes. The person should've taken care of his last duties and make sure that his relatives and children are gonna be ok. If that is the case, is there anything that could distinguish this scenario from suicide, that would make suicide more justifiable? First of all, in this scenario, there is the anticipated death, which leaves time for the person to think about the consequences of not taking care of his last duties, creating whats called anticipatory guilt, even if he's not gonna live with the consequences. So it seems that people are motivated by the idea of the consequences, not by the idea of living with consequences. But with suicide, the anticipation of death may be different, as death is not guaranteed, as the person can choose whether they'll die or not at the end of the day. This may allow the suicidal person to distract themselves from the consequences of their actions because they know that they can just not do the action. So maybe the suicidal person goes back and forth whether they want to live or die, and wait for an impulsive moment to take action. However, the suicidal person does take preparations before the action knowing well that they bring them closer to the action, often puts themselves in a place that could initiate an impulsive action, and sometimes they set dates to commit the action, which creates the anticipation and gives time to reflect on the consequences. So from that perspective, a suicidal person is just as accountable as a person who is anticipating death and doesn't take care of their responsibilities, unless if suicide is done on impulse and the preparation in a blurred state of mind. Otherwise, the anticipatory guilt should stop the suicidal person for going forward with the preparation and with the action. So my initial point has been proven wrong and suicide is indeed, selfish.
Another reason that disproves my initial point is the fact that the belief that suicide is selfish is successfully preventing people from suicide, which proves that people are able to reflect of the consequences and not take the action.
Another thought experiment that i made is that of an extreme case of a person who is suicidal, and experiences intense guilt for his suicidal idealisations, which in result causes them to commit suicide so that they can escape the guilt. This is paradoxical, cause you cannot consider the person selfish, because they collapse under the weight of their noble guilt. It also shows that suicide is the ultimate escape. For example, if a person commits suicide due to personal suffering, with suicide they end both their suffering and their guilt for the act. Which again shows that a noble person might still commit suicide. But I still feel like this is a stretch.
Just a disclaimer, when im saying the word selfish, i dont nessesarily mean that its not justifiable. A selfish act could be justifiable in some cases. If someone's suffering is too much then suicide might be justifiable, even though its selfish. When I say selfish I mean any act that benefits the person who performs the act but harms others. The word selfish typically holds negative connotation because it implies that the act is not justifiable. I don't mean it that way. The purpose of this post is not to shame or guilt-trip suicidal people. The purpose of this post is to examine the nature of suicide in a fair, unbiased and honest way and spark discussion. about the topic.
