Taking Leave of Life

In the most developed countries suicide is one of the main causes of unnatural death. What does this tell us about contemporary life? Doesn’t the tendency to describe voluntary death as the denouement of some kind of mental illness undervalue the social dimension of a complex phenomenon? What place should we give to pain when contemplating the human condition? Suicide, the object of controversial interpretations and associated with the idea of individual and collective failure, is dealt with prudently but, more than that, secretively as well. Nevertheless, thinking about it means focusing on both the most recondite corners of subjectivity and some features of our life in common.

In order to contribute to the discussion, this cycle of two sessions will, first, inquire into the philosophical aspect of moral pain and the ways in which the West has viewed suicide. In the second session, experts and representatives of civil society will discuss the elements related with prevention, from public norms through to behaviour in the private sphere and, in doing so, will also consider recommendations for families, caring for friends and relatives who are grieving a death by suicide in their immediate circle, and the challenge of communication, which is confronted by both the mass media and society as a whole.