Why Is Suicide A Morally Responsible Action?
Suicide-A morally responsible action?
The suicide culture in Japan has always been a prominent issue, and is held in a peculiar view by many. 30,000 Japanese commit suicide annually (McCurry, 2014), making Japan the 8th country with the highest suicide rates (WHO, 2014). This “suicide culture” stems from Japan’s historical roots— the warrior bushido honour code which justifies one’s basis to committ suicide. Can suicide be considered a morally responsible action this way? Or is it a beautiful death? It is also important to note that the perpetuation of this “suicide culture” shows how problematic Japan’s demographics are. Till today, many still feel that this ingrained ideology is justifiable. I will seek to unravel the historical, cultural …show more content…
80% of the Japanese adopt this religion called Shinto, which permits suicide for personal and religious reasons. An individual would perform hara-kiri (the most common form of suicide in Japan), to demonstrate their purity and honour and redeem oneself for the shame and disgrace one has brought upon his family or himself. (Barry, 1994) Another aspect we should consider is Japan’s “shame culture”. Many Japanese are afraid to express themselves; they prefer to conform due to the fear of making mistakes and thus are highly conscious about their actions. (Ishizuka, …show more content…
There are other dimensions–such as the role of the family, school environment, mass media and so on—that I am only able to mention in paasing here. It is the interaction, combination and accumulation of these variables which attributed to high suicide rates in Japan. The meanings Japanese attach to the act of suicide as a form of redemption for the “shame” they have brought about, as well as honor are the main reasons why Japanese interpret suicide as a morally responsible and justifiable action. Thus, I feel that cultural and psychological factors are the more important factors leading japanese to commit suicide. These values are ingrained in Japanese culture, and are continually socialised to future
The suicide culture in Japan has always been a prominent issue, and is held in a peculiar view by many. 30,000 Japanese commit suicide annually (McCurry, 2014), making Japan the 8th country with the highest suicide rates (WHO, 2014). This “suicide culture” stems from Japan’s historical roots— the warrior bushido honour code which justifies one’s basis to committ suicide. Can suicide be considered a morally responsible action this way? Or is it a beautiful death? It is also important to note that the perpetuation of this “suicide culture” shows how problematic Japan’s demographics are. Till today, many still feel that this ingrained ideology is justifiable. I will seek to unravel the historical, cultural …show more content…
80% of the Japanese adopt this religion called Shinto, which permits suicide for personal and religious reasons. An individual would perform hara-kiri (the most common form of suicide in Japan), to demonstrate their purity and honour and redeem oneself for the shame and disgrace one has brought upon his family or himself. (Barry, 1994) Another aspect we should consider is Japan’s “shame culture”. Many Japanese are afraid to express themselves; they prefer to conform due to the fear of making mistakes and thus are highly conscious about their actions. (Ishizuka, …show more content…
There are other dimensions–such as the role of the family, school environment, mass media and so on—that I am only able to mention in paasing here. It is the interaction, combination and accumulation of these variables which attributed to high suicide rates in Japan. The meanings Japanese attach to the act of suicide as a form of redemption for the “shame” they have brought about, as well as honor are the main reasons why Japanese interpret suicide as a morally responsible and justifiable action. Thus, I feel that cultural and psychological factors are the more important factors leading japanese to commit suicide. These values are ingrained in Japanese culture, and are continually socialised to future