Suicide In Japan Essay

When you call a suicide hotline in Japan, you may have to dial that number 30 or 40 times, because the lines are so busy. Suicide in Japan poses a major social issue affecting the whole world. It has one of the highest suicide rates due to unemployment, a cultural “acceptance” of suicide, and failed government attempts to make a change.

At least 30,000 Japanese have killed themselves every year for the last fourteen years. These rates are significantly higher than those of other industrial countries. They normally are around 24 suicides per every 100,000 people, making it roughly double the rate in the United States, and three times that in the United Kingdom. (Traphagan).

Most suicides are typically men; 71% of suicide victims in 2007 were male. In 2009, the number of suicides among men rose 641 to 23,47. Suicide was the leading cause of death among men age 20-44. Males are two times more likely to commit suicide after divorce then a female is, but nevertheless, suicide is still the leading cause of death for women age 15-34 in Japan, keeping in mind that mortality from diseases is very low at that age. (Wikepedia).

The most frequent location for suicides is in

It goes back to Japanese ritual suicide by disembowelment called Seppuku, which was looked at as honorable. Seppuku was originally reserved only for samurai (warrior class) as part of their bushido (way of the samurai) honor code. It was used voluntarily by samurai to die with honor rather than falling into the hands of their enemies and suffering torture, as a form of punishment for samurai who had committed serious offenses, or for other guilt-bringing reasons. The actual process consists of plunging a short blade into the abdomen and moving the blade from left to right in a slicing motion and is usually part of a larger ritual and performed in front of a crowd.