David Hume, a Scotsman in the early to mid 18th century, had a subjective view on ethics and the concept of free will. One of his beliefs that caused him to stand out at the time was his defense of suicide and belief that it can be justified. He doesn’t believe that everyone should kill themselves but rather, there shouldn’t be a moral opposition to it. Much earlier than this time, philosphers such as Plato, Aristotle, and Augustine were against suicide partly for religious reasons. It is a Christian principle to not committ suicide nor support the concept of it. I agree with Hume’s stance on suicide because, the only person capable of judging if it is right is the person going through it. People who aren’t experiencing psychological problems such as depression or suffering don’t truly understand the thought process leading into suicide. One who might counter Hume would believe suicide is against: God, nature, society, and self. In response, each one of these points against suicide has a contradiction to it. Furthermore, I will expain why each of these points are wrong and why suicide can be justified.

The main reason philosphoers at the time were against suicide was because it went against God. Great minds such as Pythagarus explained that the soul was put into our bodies by God, so it is a crime against God to refuse it. A similar view came from Plato in he thought we are God’s property therefore we have no right to destroy ourselves. With these ideologies in mind, Hume would question why doesn’t the Bible clearly condemn suicide? In Christianity, the Ten Commandments were a basic set of laws set forth by God that most people in the Western world followed. While there is the commandment thou shall not kill, there isn’t one that explicitly states one shouldn’t committ suicide. How can this action counter God’s teachings, if he never taught it? If God truly didn’t want anyone to commit suicide, his disciples would have thoroughly expressed it within the Bible. Hume states, “suppose that the disposal of human life is up to God alone, so that anyone who commits suicide is encroaching on God’s rights. In that case, acting for the preservation of one’s life would be just as criminal as acting for its destruction”(Four Essays). According to Hume, individuals aren’t capable of advocating against suicide because only God should contemplate it. Another issue with using religion as an argument is, if God didn’t want his children to have the choice of suicide, why are we put in situations to consider it? A common rebuttal to this is the concept of free will and people having the ability to determine their life courses. But even with free will, God allows us to experience turmoil or mental health issues where suicide is a valid option. 

A second argument against suicide was it goes against nature. Aquinas backs this statement by expressing how suicide opposes the natural law of self-preservation. Hume would counter this by explaining how any human acts that alter nature is considered against nature. For example, he says “Diverting a river, is an interference with nature; but no one usually deems it a crime. Why then is it wrong to divert the course of the blood in our veins? The physics is the same in each case.” (Why Be Good Hume). Humans since the beginning of time have taken advantage of the land around them for personal gain. It is hypocritical to socially accept the death of nature around us but not our own bodies. Hume would explain if people can destroy the land around them without contreversy, suicide shouldn’t be considered against nature. If we accept suicide as wrong due to it being against nature, then technically we must agree engineering is also wrong. Some can respond engineering is necessary for the advancement of the human race, but essentially it is no different. Another thought Hume considered is, saving lives diverts the natural course of life, but we don’t consider it wrong. If one wants to condemn the ability to kill ourselves due to being against nature, then we must condemn the ability of saving lives that are doomed to a natural death. Within both circumstances, the natural course is being affected.

The next argument against suicide is it’s harmful to society. A society is built up of the vast communities within a certain state or country. Within these societies, the varieties of individuals are an important part to the overall function. Those against suicide would argue everyone is needed within the society. Artistotle claims suicide is antisocial and we need social beings within society. That being said, not every type of individual has a positive contribution to the society. Even more, the absence of some individuals could create no impact at all. Hume thought along these lines and explained, “suicide is merely a permanent withdrawal, different in degree but not in kind from being a hermit. So it cannot always be wrong on this score. Perhaps it is wrong for some people to become hermits” (Why Be Good Hume). Those people who live a secluded hermit lifestyle don’t create an effective impact on society. Committing suicide similiar to being a hermit neither hurts or harms other individuals so it shouldn’t be consider wrong. If no one notices the death of someone within a society, it therefore isn’t harmful to the society. 

The last argument going against suicide is the opposition to oneself. The entire concept of self preservation means humans should do everything possible to ensure survival. On the other hand, people aren’t blamed for their death when they are killed. Hume thinks, “death in itself is not immoral, however bad it might be. Nor is causing death, as we see if we think of falling from a tree causing someone’s death. This is a terrible thing, but we do not blame the tree for it” (Why Be Good Hume). If we choose not to blame death by nature, we shouldn’t blame man for wanting to end suffering in their life. He would also question, don’t those certain individuals know better than anyone else what is best for them? We shouldn’t put blame on someone killing themselves if that was the best decision in their situation. The only person that fully understands the context of the situation is the individual experiencing it. In reality, suicide doesn’t have to always be considered as harm to oneself. If one is slowly dying from a painful chronic disease, suicide would in this case be ending the harm. 

In conclusion, I believe Hume is accurate in his belief that suicide can be justified. From mental illnesses to pain and suffering, there are many validable reasons that a person may consider suicide. If we are responsible for ourselves, we should be able to have to option of terminating our existence early. The arguments behind faith, nature, society, and self all have reasons or contradictions resulting in suicide not being against them. With our God given free will, one should not be looked down upon for ending their pain. The individual with the most important judgment is the one enduring the circumstances.