group 2
MPU:FalsafahDan Isu Semasa
Findings and Discussion
Western Philosophy and Eastern Philosophy:
Suicide is the deliberate act of bringing about one's own death. It can be described in a variety of ways from a philosophical point of view, particularly in western and eastern philosophy. Western philosophy is referred to as the school of thought from Greek philosophy that influenced the greater part of Western civilization. On the contrary, Eastern philosophy is based mainly in Asia, more specifically Chinese philosophy. Moreover, Western philosophy takes its roots from Rome and Christianity, specifically Judeo-Christianity. Eastern philosophy, on the other hand, is from Confucianism, Mahayana Buddhism, and Taoism. Thus, simplified, Eastern philosophy is classical Chinese, while Western philosophy is more Latin in its roots. (Celine, 2018) Broad existential topics like religion, honour and the meaning of life have affected opinions on suicide. The emphasis will be on the perceived honour and dignity of the act of self-sacrifice from an eastern perspective, as evidenced, for example, by the ritualistic suicides of the samurai known as seppuku and Japan's Kamikaze pilots during World War II. From a western viewpoint, the emphasis will be on the Judeo-Christian concept that suicide is always wicked and evil, and more particularly, that the soul of the person who has committed suicide will never be able to enjoy the benefits of the here after. (Corcoran JJ, 2015)
According to Buddhism, there is no such thing as a unique soul with a distinct identity. Buddhists believe in a cycle of birth, life, and death, also called Saṃsāra. Life is difficult, and enlightenment is required to break away from the cycle of rebirth and stop reincarnating. Therefore, if a person kills himself, the act will leave a mark on his soul, preventing him from attaining enlightenment. The overall effect is that the person must return and endure more suffering as they go through the motions of life. Depending on the individual's psychological and emotional state at the time of suicide, I think their soul will be in a dark, without light state. Every culture or individual has a particular set of goals, and I believe that is important. For instance, the Vietnam War shed light on suicide from an Eastern perspective. During this period of political and social instability, Buddhist monks started to burn themselves alive in protest of the war. Journalists from the United States and other countries filmed the horrifying images of these suicide attempts. Easterners were able to see past this external ugliness and understand the philosophical and religious foundations guiding the aforementioned monks' extreme behaviour. Suicides represented a religious person's attempt to address the social evils of the day, which gave them a deeper significance and made them more appropriate in the eyes of Easterners.
In the west, the root of opinion on suicide comes directly from the Judeo-Christian tenets found in the Bible. The basic western belief that suicide is in all instances sinful and wrong became widespread with the mass-production of the Bible in 1455. It was in this year that German goldsmith Johann Gutenberg produced the first 200 bound and typeset copies of the Bible for purchase and sale. In the years and centuries that followed, westerners became increasingly more literate as the Bible became increasingly less difficult to find. The result was a massive population of Jews and Christians who had access to the Bible and the ideas found within and who, if illiterate, could have these ideas read to them by an acquaintance. Thus we see how the Bible’s treatment of suicide - namely the blatant assertion found throughout the Bible that suicide is always wrong - became part of the ideological framework of millions of Christians and Jews in the west. Even when the Protestant Reformation of the 16th century divided Christianity into myriad sects, all the varying branches from Calvinism to Lutheranism to Catholicism still shared the belief that self-sacrifice was wrong; regardless of denomination, any Christian of the period would have argued that life can be given and taken away only by God, and thus the individual who has committed suicide has usurped a power that was never his to yield.
Psychology and Sociology:
The field of social sciences is crucial in understanding human interaction and factors that influence it. Looking at psychology and sociology as individual fields, the most prominent difference is the contrast between the study of individuals in society and the study of societies as a concept. Psychology focuses on an individual’s behavior which is influenced by both internal as well as external factors (nature and nurture). Sociology, on the other hand, looks at collectives such as cultures and social circles and studies individuals as a part of the collective rather than as individuals. While this prompts the need for separate fields as a result of the prominent differences, the fields also have similarities. While the subjects of study vary, both fields aim to understand patterns of behavior. The overlapping concept of the fields can be observed in social psychology which looks at influences of society on an individual. This calls for the understanding of sociological concepts of culture, class, groups while also looking at understanding at individual behaviors in the social context. While the differences between the two fields are prominent, the fields exist in co-dependency of each other. While it may be noted that they are different fields, the need for understanding human behavior in order to define culture and society are important aspects of consideration in sociology. Similarly, the need for understanding external influences on behavior such as culture, family and society for understanding individual behavior are essential aspects of understanding psychology. It can be stated that both fields study human behavior but from different aspects. Despite differences being more defined between the two areas of study, the overlapping similarities create co-dependency between the fields of psychology and sociology.
"There is only one really serious philosophical problem: it is suicide." -----Albert Camus
According to our survey, the majority of respondents agreed that "suicide" in Malaysia is an important topic that we ought to touch more in-depth. But everyone feels differently about talking about suicidal topics in normal conversation. Of the 63 respondents, 7.9% would feel very uncomfortable, while 31.7% felt normal, indicating the emotions that exist in humans. Humans are aware of their inner emotions and know how they feel in a certain situation, and everyone feels differently in the same situation.
Among the 63 respondents, 77.8% had never attempted suicide or engaged in self-harm behaviour, and 22.2% had attempted suicide or engaged in self-harm behaviour. The survey shows that 77.8% of the respondents, if you begin to have thoughts of harming or killing yourself, all have a direction and know how to prevent them. For example talking to someone or using therapeutic leisure therapy to improve mood. This suggests that talking to someone about suicide does not induce or trigger suicidal thoughts or behaviors, but instead, paying attention and listening to others can reduce suffering and prevent suicide.
22.2% of the respondents had attempted suicide and self-harm because of relationship issues, mental health issues, experiences of bullying or trauma, life stress, study pressure and physical illness. Among them, 42.9% came from mental health issues, 28.6% came from relationship issues, and 7.1% came from physical illness. The WHO states that mental health is "more than just the absence of mental disorders or disabilities." Peak mental health is not only about managing active conditions but also looking after ongoing wellness and happiness. This shows that preserving and restoring mental health is crucial both individually and at a community and social level. There are also some risk factors that we need to pay attention to.
