Suicide Is Painless: Difference between revisions

* The movie ''[[Flatliners]]'' is entirely based around this concept and the people who intentionally enter a death-like state.

* The film ''The End'' is a [[Black Comedy|dark dark dark comic take]] on this subject. Burt Reynolds plays a man who finds out he only has six months to live and wants to off himself before any serious pain sets in. Dom DeLuise is the delusional mental patient who gleefully volunteers to help him. In the end Burt decides not to go through with his suicide, but Dom's character doesn't believe him and won't give up trying to kill him (even during the ending credits.)

** Yet another black-comedy variant, 1990's ''Short Time'', stars Dabney Coleman as a police officer who learns he has a terminal disease and attempts to get himself killed in the line of duty so his family can collect the life insurance. {{spoiler|None of his attempts are successful, which turns out to be a good thing since the diagnosis [[Mistaken for Dying|turns out to have been erroneous]].}}

* The finale of ''[[Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon]]'' appears to involve this in mimicry of a legend earlier told, except that it's been established that the character in question can fly, and she's seen again in a sequel.

 

== Literature ==

* Cruelly subverted in Dostoyevsky's ''The Possessed''; sympathetic (if batshit insane) nihilist Kirillov, [[Well-Intentioned Extremist]] and [[Anti-Villain]], wants to kill himself for his own philosophical reasons, and wants his suicide to be a serene, noble apotheosis. Everything is prepared, and he has been anxiously waiting for the right moment since ''years''. However, when the time comes he hesitates. [[Complete Monster]] Petr Stepanovic, who needs his death for his own diabolical schemes, tries to kill him, and fails; Kirillov, humiliated and disgusted for his own cowardice, finally shoots himself. It's worth noting that his death basically allows Petr Stepanovic to pull a [[Karma Houdini]].

* In Richard Hooker's ''[[MASH (novel)]]'', "Painless Pole" Waldowski decides to commit suicide during one of his frequent attacks of depression, and the rest of the camp pitches in to "assist" him. Subverted, in that he doesn't actually die.

== Live Action TV ==

* In the ''[[House (TV series)|House]]'' episode "97 Seconds", House sticks a knife in an electrical socket so he can have a near-death experience and prove there is no afterlife after one patient claims his experience was proof and mocks House's skepticism as a lack of a similar experience. Besides being just plain weird, it's also very out of character for a man who already ''has'' had two near-death experiences. At least he sent a page to a fellow doctor to make sure he'd be revived. [[Too Spicy for Yog-Sothoth|Hell probably would have sent him back anyway]].

* ''[[Battlestar Galactica Reimagined]]'' Dualla, after the disappointing discovery of a ruined Earth, finds comfort with her ex-husband Lee, celebrates his big speech, goes back to her bunk, smiling and humming a little tune, admonishes Gaeta for trying to bring her down, then takes off her ring, hangs it up, and still humming and grinning, shoots herself in the head.

* In ''[[Lost]]'' season 4, Regina wraps herself in chains and casually jumps off the freighter. It is implied she's not the only freightie to commit suicide lately.

** Timothy Leary (although he didn't commit suicide) recommended something similar.

** And George Eastman, founder of Kodak, had a suicide note that read, in total, "Dear friends: My work is done. Why wait?"

{{quote|Yet he did not fling away life with precipitate haste, but having made an incision in his veins and then, according to his humour, bound them up, he again opened them, while he conversed with his friends, not in a serious strain or on topics that might win for him the glory of courage. And he listened to them as they repeated, not thoughts on the immortality of the soul or on the theories of philosophers, but light poetry and playful verses. To some of his slaves he gave liberal presents, a flogging to others. He dined, indulged himself in sleep, that death, though forced on him, might have a natural appearance. Even in his will he did not, as did many in their last moments, flatter Nero or Tigellinus or any other of the men in power. On the contrary, he described fully the prince's shameful excesses, with the names of his male and female companions and their novelties in debauchery, and sent the account under seal to Nero.}}

** Henryk Sienkiewicz's dramatization of Petronius' death, in his novel ''Quo Vadis'', imagines a letter to Nero of equal parts wit and snark, almost savaging his ex-friend more for his artistic "skills" than his crimes.