The Sociological Perspective of Suicide - Research Paper Example

The Sociological Perspective of Suicide Suicide has a very sociological perspective attached with it since it deals with the murder of an individual who has taken his life with his own hands due to the fact that he lost belief in his own self. Introduction Suicide is a process which asks of an individual to manifest that he has given up hope to survive in this world, and death is his only solace. He believes that death in the form of suicide would give him the escape from this material world, and make him feel aloof with whatever is happening within his particular world. An individual who has decided for his own self to commit suicide will find no alternative to delay his decision (Novak 1997). He finds the best possible methodology and the tools to make sure that suicide is the order of the day as far as his life is concerned. However having said all this, suicide is no escape from this world because as the sociological theory suggests, suicide is indeed the end of everything but not exactly a logical conclusion to a life that can bring about solutions if proper consideration and hard work are devoted. It is a given that suicide can always be avoided but the ones who believe in it are usually in support of this form of death. The Sociological Perspective of Suicide Under the sociological perspective, positivism suggests that social processes need to be analyzed and studied in terms of the cause and effect using a scientific model which depicts that the suicide process is indeed a study between life and death for the ones who believe in this dictum in essence. The sociological element brings to light the factor that these individuals know beforehand that if they commit suicide or fall into its trap, they would have to undergo a great deal of pain and torture since dying is not an easy phenomenon in entirety (Pritchard 1995). Within the sociological perspective, suicide comes directly under the criminology mindset. Since criminology is a sub-field of the sociological theory, it has further sub-parts within it as well, which include – the differential association theory, the labeling theory, the rational choice theory, the social disorganization theory, the social learning theory, the strain theory and lastly the sub-cultural theory. The Humanistic Perspective If seen from a humanistic perspective, suicide is a bane in the time and age of today as well as in the past. It does not offer any form of solace because it takes a life away from the worldly affairs and makes other feel bad about the whole suicide situation. The individuals who are near and dear to the ones who commit suicide feel that they have been hard done by. They encounter societal imbalance because people feel that these individuals are the reason why suicide took place on the part of the deceased person. It is a well-known fact the world over that suicide does not solve the problem, in fact it is the start of a problem which has long-lasting and consequential affects on the family of the deceased as they have to go through a tough time at the hands of the police authorities and the society at large which continuously questions the legitimacy of the suicide. The cause is found out because this is pertinent to the overall study of suicide in the first place (Bayatrizi 2010). The Negativity within the Phenomenon of Suicide The sociological perspective pays a great deal of significance on how suicide is taken as something of a very negative tenet within its folds. The suicide activity is the result of a lot of breakdown on the part of the deceased since he has got to the decision of giving up his life due to internal and external pressures which have come to his realization. There are a number of reasons why suicide is the end result. There could be problems within his domestic life which would mean that he decides to take his life with his own hands. He would not consult with any one before he has decided to commit suicide. This is because he believes that no one else can solve his problem and therefore it is best to take his life and end everything at the earliest. One must understand that suicide is not the result of everything that an individual has envisaged. He must talk to people around him and seek guidance and empathy because this is a much desired tangent, and should be comprehended duly by the people who are near and dear to him. The sociological perspective discusses how suicide is just about the most fatal mistake that an individual can commit within his own life. He should always speak to people around him before going into such an extreme step because if he dies today, there will not be another life for him. Understanding such domains is indeed very pertinent. The Role of the Society Indeed how the society takes up the perspective of suicide is an important one. If certain individuals within the society foresee that a person is going to commit suicide, all out efforts and endeavors should be taken to thwart such a mindset. This is important because if the society does not play its respective role, no one else would. This person has fallen within the trap of taking his life with his own hands, and thus it would be hard for him to change his mind. It is therefore significant that he is told what exactly his options are and how he should measure up the opportunities and difficulties which are in his immediate reckoning (Cebula 2006). The elders within his clan should speak to this individual so that he gets a fresh perspective, which he has not experienced to date. This will help him understand the different nuances of life and how he shall adapt with the difficult and tough times with persistence and a sense of well-being. These elements are deemed as important because no one wants to hear about suicides in the time and age of today as surviving in the midst of present times is essential to a good life (Szasz 2002). Conclusion It would be sound to suggest here that suicide remains a deterrent to any society which is willing to explore its own basis. It wants to find out how people can literally give up their own lives and thus escape from this world. However the answers seem to be different within their contexts and implications, more so because each one of these individuals has his own replies. Some opine that suicide would make them feel free from this world as they would enter into a zone which is problem-free and which does not have any apprehensions and issues. However what they forget is the fact that they should be told that living in this world is pertinent than just dying and fading away. Therefore suicide is a bane and quite rightly so due to a number of reasons, all of which are mentioned in the above paragraphs. All said and done, suicide is just an escape which should not be encouraged at any level and the individuals who are falling into this trap should be discouraged immediately so that sanity could prevail at the end of the day. References Bayatrizi, Z (2010). John C. Weaver, A Sadly Troubled History: The Meanings of Suicide in the Modern Age. Canadian Journal of Sociology, Vol. 35 Cebula, R (2006). Determinants of Youth Suicide: A Friendly Comment with Suggestions. The American Journal of Economics and Sociology, Vol. 65 Novak, D (1997). Suicide Is Not a Private Choice. First Things: A Monthly Journal of Religion and Public Life, August Pritchard, C (1995). Suicide – The Ultimate Rejection? A Psycho-Social Study. Open University Press Szasz, T (2002). Straight Talk about Suicide. Ideas on Liberty, Vol. 52, September Read More