Interpreting Suicide Notes: A Tripartite Method

Abstract

This paper will present a new method of interpreting suicide notes. It will begin with a discussion of the limitations of interpreting suicide notes. The paper will then clarify the purpose of interpretation as attempt at communication and how to understand the suicide note as an object of interpretation. This is followed by introduction of three traditional methods of interpretation: the pluralist, intentionalist, and psychoanalytic methods. Each suicide note is then interpreted using the appropriate method. The paper culminates in presenting a method to interpret suicide notes as a form of self-narration. This interpretation is done by using a tripartite method which combines the three previous methods as a way of focusing on the author’s self-narration. The paper culminates in demonstrating the tripartite method and shows its effectiveness in elucidating the role of self-narrative in the suicide note.