What Is Arthur Schopenhauer's Response To Suicide

Arthur Schopenhauer argues that the overall value of life is negative at all times. This stems from the notion that humans live in an internal realty governed by a universal will which drives constant desire from all things in existence. Desires are the products of suffering from the lack of something. While happiness is only a neutral relief from life’s torment. However, an objection stems from Schopenhauer’s reluctance to endorse suicide as a means of escaping this fate of pain. It argues that if life is better than nonexistence then it must have positive value at some point. Thus, things cannot be negative at all times.

Schopenhauer’s believes that the ultimate reality of life is a unified metaphysical will that controls the actions of

By killing oneself an individual denies the possibility of completely renouncing the will and being relieved from the turbulent pressures in life.

However, I argue that for this salvation to be worth forgoing death it must break Schopenhauer's argument that life is a constantly negative. Nonexistence after death is eternal neutrality. The decision to forgo this eternal neutrality would have to mean that salvation from the will in life must be of higher value. Therefore, life during that period must be positive. For example, Schopenhauer argues that contemplating and appreciating art is an act free from will and desire. Therefore, since it gives some pleasure and does not stem from suffering it must be positive in value.

This brings a further objection to Schopenhauer’s claim that all happiness stems from a suffering from a lack of something. This premise does not hold true in two scenarios. The first is when we feel happiness from something we did not expect to happen. For example, bumping into an old friend unexpectedly. We could not have been urging for it in the moment, therefore that happiness must be positive. Second, when we receive happiness in places where we only expected bad things. For example, when someone does not study for a test but does well anyway they receive unexpected