Philosophy Stack Exchange
Philosophy Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [suicide]

23 questions
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Can Suicide be Rational?

The concept of rational suicide occasionally occurs in the context of ethical questions, such as whether or not there are any circumstances in which physician-assisted suicide would be morally acceptable. Those who favor physician-assisted suicide…
Jordan S
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Why I cannot consent to be killed?

My friend and I had an argument about the subject. He argued that in some circumstances it should be legal to consent to be killed (e.g. if the dominant kills the submissive during the BDSM session and both are OK with that). I found that idea…
Yuki Endo
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What are some philosophical works that explore constructing meaning in life from an agnostic or atheist view?

I've been deeply suicidal for years, but it's gotten worse recently. I grew up Mormon, and last year I realized I couldn't believe in it anymore. I just couldn't; it would take too long to explain. I started watching "The Good Place". I had seen it…
Emily Savage
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Does extreme nihilism endorse suicidal behavior?

Nihilism lacks any belief in moral values. Then, if taken to its extreme form, does nihilism prescribe to a belief in no purpose for existence at all? If nihilism has no objective value system, does it mean that existence itself has no value for a…
Yordan Yordanov
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Is there a universal, timeless and deeply compelling reason to pursue anything?

Don Jack has a job, a few friends, often goes to the gym, and has ambitious dreams of participating in life. Often he finds himself questioning whether he continues to pursue these things. The chain of whys hasn't been resolved. As an example (which…
Hex Heager
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Stoic way of dealing with insults and humiliation

Are there any stoic writings lecturing on dealing with insults, humiliations and even extreme physical humiliations that might drive one to commit suicide?
Somanna
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Why are euthanasia and suicide considered inhumane?

With animals, when they are in considerable pain or suffering from a terminal condition, it's typically considered humane to euthanize them as a way to minimize suffering. However, with humans, the concept of euthanasia is considered highly taboo,…
user189728
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Is failure to avoid certain death tantamount to suicide?

Looking for philosophical and/or religious perspectives (if allowed): Let's say you have a machine that predicted, with absolute certainty, that I would be killed in a car accident if I drove my own car home from work this evening (further, let's…
Gary L
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Is it ok, according to Camus, to try to get someone else to commit suicide?

When is it virtuous to predicate your happiness on another person's suicide? What would Camus say about deliberately getting another person to kill themselves? Supposing that, rightly or wrongly, you suspect them of being dangerous to you.
user64190
2
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Kant, suicide, and the unalienable right to life

Recently, after taking an introductory course in Kantian ethics — I am now familiar with the concepts of free will, duty-conception, the categorical imperative —, I was writing an essay on his position regarding suicide. If I understood Kant…
user265131
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If suicide is the very serious philosophical problem, why doesn't "philosophy of suicide" have its own branch?

I don't mean Suicidology because that's science, not philosophy. I don't mean Ethics or Moral Philosophy because that's not 100% suicide. If suicide is veritably serious, why isn't it a separate branch? I perused Harvard, MIT, and Oxford…
user8572
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Kant and "the causes of living"

Once upon a time, I was thinking about the argument for the justification of mass civilian killing that is read off a sense of collective responsibility in "evil nations," and wondered: If it is justifiable for a pilot to kill civilians because…
Kristian Berry
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How should your treat your future self, ethically?

There are many situations in life where you preemptively decide on some course of action, but when you have to actually take that action you don't. A particular such situation is euthanasia - you might decide that if X happens you want to be killed,…
Command Master
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Did any philosophers in the middle ages and before tackle depression or suicide?

Extremely weird question, I know, But were any philosophers in the middle ages and before tackle topics such as depression and suicide? I mean we see them tackle happiness and living happily, but were there any philosophers in the middle ages and…
captindfru
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How do I free myself from being enslaved by the randomness of reality without committing suicide?

I want to state two points first: I do not find suicide as a possible solution for me. The last thing I would do is to kill myself, because I want to live forever. This is a philosophical question, “There is only one really serious philosophical…
Themobisback
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