Dead in Life: Narratives About Circumstances Prior to Suicide in Rural Western Spain

Abstract

Background: In rural contexts, meanings of suicide are part of the intimate heritage of those closest to the suicidal person. They are also constructed through a social process. Over time, the community creates meanings, shares notions, and experiences common emotions. In this process, the boundaries between the life and death of the suicidal person are blurred. Methods: An ethnographic study was carried out with more than six months of fieldwork in a rural locality of Extremadura, Spain. This research included narratives that delved into the historical memory of suicides from 1922 to 2023. Results: In the narratives, the following categories emerged in the consideration of the suicidal person at the moment of death: trance as a transition/connection towards death, the appearance of being detached from life, the possibility of resurrection, and the premonitory appearance. These categories were interrelated and shared close symbolic meanings. Conclusions: The nature of the results and their contrast with diverse theories and experiences show that the earthly and otherworldly planes are intertwined. This allows us to affirm that, in the narratives about suicides, individuals perceive themselves as simultaneously alive and dead at the moment of taking their own lives.

Keywords

• suicide
• death
• duality
• community narratives
• ethnography