From: dareka@inter7NS.jp   
      
   Rastus wrote:   
   >>on a separate note, Japan has one of the higher suicide rate among the   
   >>industry nations, 90,000+ people did so last year?   
   >   
   >   
   > But historically and culturally suicide is more "acceptable" in Japan than   
   > other countries as well. In most other cultures suicide is seen as sin or a   
   > weakness, whereas Japan has had an historically idealised perception of it   
   > being almost a noble act.   
   >   
   > In the past (before Christianity) suicide was a lot more acceptable in   
   > western society as well. In Roman times for example - suicide was not   
   > unusual and in many circumstances it was expected. It was considered very   
   > poor form for a Roman official to be held hostage for example, they were   
   > expected to suicide in such instances. Since then though, there have been a   
   > couple of thousand years of people being told they will "burn in hell for   
   > eternity" if they commit suicide so it has somewhat gone out of fashion and   
   > is now considered purely as a symptom of mental illness.   
      
   I remember one or two westerners' comments on the issue on a   
   TV program many years ago. IIRC, they were talking on shoujo   
   manga or something and one scene they picked from a shoujo   
   manga written by $B0l>r$f$+$j(B(Ichijou Yukari) or $BCSEDM}Be;R(B   
   (Ikeda Riyoko). The scene is last page of a manga and the   
   protagonists/lovers are carrying out suicide pact by walking   
   into the sea together, maybe both characters were female if it   
   was Ikeda Riyoko. They criticized how Japanese romanticized   
   (no pun or anything intended) and beautified suicide in shoujo   
   manga and declared suicide is sin(or evil?) in the western world.   
      
   --   
      
   dareka   dareka@inter7NS.jp   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
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