Many are the reasons that might lead one to commit suicide, including mental illnesses, severe unhappiness and ending suffering. These are motives internal to each specific individual and that affect only themselves. There is, however, an observed phenomenon that not only affects one particular person, but also influences others to act equal or analogously – the Werther Effect.
Named after Goethe’s famous work, “The Sorrows of the Young Werther”, the Werther Effect is associated to an upsurge in suicide rates right after the public announcement of an influential or well-known person’s suicide. This connection to the book is due to the various copycat attempts and actual occurrences that unfolded …show more content…
The show narrates the story of Hannah Baker, a 16 years old teenage girl who kills herself and leave 13 audios recorded in cassette tapes explaining the reasons why she took her own life. Besides addressing to 12 different high school classmates and associating them to the causes of her death, what worries the authorities is that the show contains explicit scenes of rape and, even worse, it displays in every detail the protagonist’s suicide. Psychologists fear that, as in “The Sorrows of the Young Werther”, “13 Reasons Why” might initiate a new wave of copycat suicides. Many adolescents who suffer bully at school or at any other places might identify with the sorrows of young Hannah and feel that imitating her actions is the only way out of their misery. The show would pose as a suggestion and those who already are vulnerable and experiencing suicidal thoughts would feel motivated to echo Hannah’s …show more content…
351). In other words, people who no longer find a meaning in life (or are going through a very difficult phase) are open to options that will remove this horrible sensation that they are feeling. As alternatives to ending one’s life, there are several opportunities for someone to start feeling complete again. For instance, there are many supportive groups from many different areas (religious, political, Alcoholic Anonymous, etc.) that are more than willing to help those who seek them. In addition, every country has its own suicide hotline available 24 hours a