Suicide in Fanworks
This page is about suicide in fanworks. For the phenomenon of faking one's own death online, see Pseuicide.
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How is suicide handled in fanworks? Is it more commonly portrayed in gen, het or slash works? Is the topic more prevalent in certain fandoms?
Attempted Suicide
Completed Suicide
An Attack Meant to Look Like Suicide
In Star Trek: TOS
From Boldly Writing, Joan Verba comments about what she saw as a prevalence of stories about suicide in Star Trek: TOS., citing an example in the zine Vault of Tomorrow #8: "Among the stories was 'In the Silence of the Sea-Wind Dawn' by Lynn Syck and Laurel Ridener, which was notable because it was representative of a type of story in Star Trek fanzines. Here, Kirk dies; afterward, Spock and McCoy commit suicide. Other fanzine stories repeated this basic plot of Spock dying, and Kirk committing suicide, or vice versa. Between [the movies] Star Trek II and Star Trek III, stories in which Kirk attempted suicide after the death of Spock abounded. I never found, nor was included in, any discussions of why writers wrote this sort of story or why readers wanted to read them, but there certainly were a lot of them around over the years."
In Stargate Atlantis
The characters most often portrayed as suicidal in Stargate Atlantis stories are probably Rodney McKay and John Sheppard. Contributing factors are certain canon events and episodes, John's depiction as being a suicidal risk-taker in canon and fanon[1], and fanon about John and Rodney's respective unhappy childhoods. Two particular Stargate Atlantis episodes have inspired several stories that refer to suicide. Trinity, in which Rodney blows up 5/6ths of a solar system and (for a while) loses John's friendship, led not just to multiple stories in which Rodney attempts to or commits suicide, but gave rise to an entire genre of stories known as the Post-Trinity Phenomenon. The episode Doppelganger, in which an alien entity takes John Sheppard's shape in other people's dreams and not only harms others but persuades expedition psychologist Kate Heightmeyer to commit suicide, led to multiple stories in which the effects of her death are noted, including some in which John contemplates or attempts to commit suicide.
Example Stories
- Charting the Motion of Planets by dasha, McKay/Sheppard. Rodney attempts suicide by allergen when he is captured in hopes of preventing his captors using him against Atlantis.
- Side Effects by jane elliot, McKay/Sheppard. Rodney attempts suicide after the side effects of mpreg and Trinity combine to make him miserable.
- Trinity's Fall by lavvyan, McKay/Sheppard. Post-Trinity Phenomenon story in which Rodney attempts suicide.
- Of Duty, Atonement, and Redemption by SGC Gategirl, gen. Post-Trinity Phenomenon story in which Rodney is suicidal.
- Thirty Six by Cassie Jamie, McKay/Sheppard. Another Post-Trinity Phenomenon story in which Rodney attempts suicide.
- {could use some post-Doppelganger examples}
- Machinery of Night by lilac way, McKay/Sheppard. An Ancient device makes John suicidal.
- The Hard Prayer by rheanna, McKay/Sheppard. Almost-no-survivors apocafic in which John is sliding towards suicide until he meets Rodney.
- The World That We Live In (No, We Can't Go Back) by kyuuketsukirui, gen. Earth-based AU story in which young John decides to permanently stay with his dead friend Rodney.
In Other Fandoms
- ?
References
- ↑ See, for example, MVP by cesperanza
