The Impact of Suicide Across Cultures: More Than a Fairy Tale (IN: The Impact of Suicide, edited by B L Mishara)

The cultural variations in the effects of suicide are reviewed in this chapter. Different types of suicide (in terms of the consequences intended by the victim), e.g. atonement (seppuku), nonviolent resistance (self-immolation by Buddhist monks), or revenge (Lusi-Kaliai of New Guinea) are discussed. There is also a discussion of cluster suicide & suicide as a public performance, i.e. Yukio Mishima. (21 refs.)