A meditation on the human tendency to end our own lives, by an author who brings his own experience of depression to bear on this rarely discussed subject.
Why do people want to kill themselves? Despite the prevalence of suicide in the developed world, it's a question most of us fail to ask. On hearing news of a suicide we are devastated, but overwhelmingly we feel disbelief.
In A Very Human Ending, research psychologist Jesse Bering lifts the lid on this taboo subject, examining the suicidal mindset from the inside out to reveal the subtle tricks the mind can play when we're easy emotional prey. In raising challenging questions Bering tests our contradictory superstitions about the act itself.
Combining cutting-edge research with investigative journalism and first-person testimony, Bering also addresses the history of suicide and its evolutionary inheritance to offer a personal, accessible, yet scientifically sound examination of why we are the only species on earth that deliberately ends its own life.
This penetrating analysis aims to demystify a subject that knows no cultural or demographic boundaries.
About the Author
Jesse Bering is an award-winning science writer specializing in evolutionary psychology and human behavior. His ‘Bering in Mind’ column at Scientific American was named a 2010 Webby Award Honoree by the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences. His previous books are, The Belief Instinct which was included in the American Library Association’s Top 25 Books of the Year. This was followed by a collection of his previously published essays, Why Is the Penis Shaped Like That? and Perv , a taboo-shattering work igniting discussion and fierce debates, named as a New York Times Editor’s Choice.
Industry Reviews
Jesse Bering asks the questions no one else dares, he tells truths that others shy away from, and he writes the books that I wish I had written. To me, he is everything a great scientist and communicator should be. Suicide may be an uncomfortable subject yet the escalating numbers of people who take their lives each year means we must make it's unravelling our priority. I have no doubt this book will have a profound impact on all who read it, and add considerably to our understanding of that self-willed oblivion, whether it lies palpably just beneath our own skin, or the skins of those we love. But perhaps most importantly of all it will help dispel the stigma and shame that so perniciously clings to all suicides. -- Dr Christian Jessen
A brave and important exploration of a subject we urgently need to demystify. It will change every reader for the better. -- Derren Brown
Bering's book touches upon some deep questions relevant to all of us. Indeed, it is as much about what makes us uniquely human as it is about suicide. A Very Human Ending transcends its own objectives. It is a fascinating, thoughtful, unflinching meditation on one of the most intriguing and curious aspects of the human condition. -- Dr Frank Tallis, clinical psychologist * Evening Standard *
I'm not surprised that a book on suicide would be very personal, but I didn't expect it to be so damn funny. It's also engaging, thoughtful, and sensitive - although Bering is certainly irreverent, there is a real appreciation of how painful and difficult this topic can be. This is a book for scholars and for a general audience, but it is also entirely suitable for people whose lives have been touched by the suicide of someone they loved. * Paul Bloom, Professor of Psychology at Yale University and author of Against Empathy *
I have yet to come away from reading [Bering's] work and not feel considerably better informed than I was just minutes before * Forbes *
