"Break the silence for suicide attempt survivors"
https://www.ted.com/talks/jd_schramm
In this TED Talk, JD Schramm tells a story of a man named John who seems to have it all, but because of his addiction and depression, he tries to kill himself by jumping off of the Manhattan Bridge. He was rescued by the Coast Guard, and went through a difficult recovery once he realized the dearth of resources available to him as a suicide attempt survivor. Schramm reveals at the end that he is John. Schramm gives heart wrenching statistics about suicide attempt survivors who feel even more isolated after recovery, and succeed in committing suicide the next time. He ends the talk with a plea to the audience to ask for help if they or someone they know is contemplating suicide or has attempted suicide.
Schramm separates himself from the story in the beginning and reveals the truth at the end. This adds ethos to his argument because the audience realizes that the experiences are first-hand, and not a story of a person he knows. One might argue, though, that this deceit makes Schramm less credible. But this can be disputed by the fact that primary sources are seen as more reliable and the fact that this is his personal experience, it keeps his credibility. He uses pathos throughout the story as a whole because the audience immediately feels sorry for John who is going through a lot of emotional turmoil. By talking about his internal struggles and the injuries he suffered after the attempt, Schramm appeals the emotions of the audience not only to keep their attention but to create a connection between the audience and John, which is an effective strategy for his argument. Schramm's logos has bias because it his own personal experience, but it can still be seen as reliable because he uses statistics that include him as well as other people. For example, he says that 19 out of 20 who attempt suicide fail, and this statistic includes him. He also mentions the fact that those 19 people are 37 times more likely to succeed the second time, and this statistic does not include him because he does not attempt suicide again (or, at least he doesn't mention it). This statistic strengthens his overall argument that suicide attempt survivors are extremely at risk for committing suicide and need easy access to resources.
I don't know about you (Mrs. Genesky/anyone reading this), but when I was in middle school, a lot of people were struggling with depression/suicidal thoughts, including myself. I found myself trying to help other people when I could barely help myself most of the time. I talked more people out of giving up than I care to say, and I completely agree with the fact that these survivors need more access to resources. There are a plethora of hot lines, but they're all to talk you down. In my experience, it's not very often that when a person is suicidal, they can think clear enough to call a hot line. I have just been lucky enough to be talking to someone at the right time in order to calm them down. Nothing makes you feel more alone than when you've woken up after trying to commit suicide, and everyone avoids the discussion. Of course, it's really awkward, I get it, the person literally tried to kill themselves. It's scary. But why do you think they tried to do that in the first place? Isolation after a suicide attempt can be detrimental; if you find yourself in the situation where you're talking to someone about their suicide attempt, try to be patient. Remind them that things will get better, even though that's, like, the last thing they want to hear. I don't know, but whenever I think about the fact that science exists (ex. gravity) whether you believe it exists or not, it reminds me that happiness exists, whether you believe it exists or not. It's really basic, and it won't work for anyone, (obviously) but it's the same concept. Anyway, this relates to the concept of Alienation that we will be discussing next unit because it discusses isolation and the estrangement that people who attempt suicide feel before and after the attempt. Although the situation is different in Never Let Me Go, Kathy H. is alienated from the rest of the world, like a person who attempts suicide. This is only slightly different because Kathy H. doesn't feel alienated while a person who attempts suicide does. Dual nature is a concept that we talked about last unit that shows up in Jekyll and Hyde as well as this topic. Jekyll and a person contemplating suicide both face internal battles, and sometimes the negative side wins (in Jekyll and Hyde it would be Hyde, while in this topic, it would be the suicide attempt). It is a constant struggle that causes people in both situations (Jekyll and Hyde and the person contemplating suicide) to feel like they can't talk to anyone for various reasons, and causes them to shut themselves off from the rest of the world when they should be seeking help.
https://www.ted.com/talks/jd_schramm
In this TED Talk, JD Schramm tells a story of a man named John who seems to have it all, but because of his addiction and depression, he tries to kill himself by jumping off of the Manhattan Bridge. He was rescued by the Coast Guard, and went through a difficult recovery once he realized the dearth of resources available to him as a suicide attempt survivor. Schramm reveals at the end that he is John. Schramm gives heart wrenching statistics about suicide attempt survivors who feel even more isolated after recovery, and succeed in committing suicide the next time. He ends the talk with a plea to the audience to ask for help if they or someone they know is contemplating suicide or has attempted suicide.
Schramm separates himself from the story in the beginning and reveals the truth at the end. This adds ethos to his argument because the audience realizes that the experiences are first-hand, and not a story of a person he knows. One might argue, though, that this deceit makes Schramm less credible. But this can be disputed by the fact that primary sources are seen as more reliable and the fact that this is his personal experience, it keeps his credibility. He uses pathos throughout the story as a whole because the audience immediately feels sorry for John who is going through a lot of emotional turmoil. By talking about his internal struggles and the injuries he suffered after the attempt, Schramm appeals the emotions of the audience not only to keep their attention but to create a connection between the audience and John, which is an effective strategy for his argument. Schramm's logos has bias because it his own personal experience, but it can still be seen as reliable because he uses statistics that include him as well as other people. For example, he says that 19 out of 20 who attempt suicide fail, and this statistic includes him. He also mentions the fact that those 19 people are 37 times more likely to succeed the second time, and this statistic does not include him because he does not attempt suicide again (or, at least he doesn't mention it). This statistic strengthens his overall argument that suicide attempt survivors are extremely at risk for committing suicide and need easy access to resources.
I don't know about you (Mrs. Genesky/anyone reading this), but when I was in middle school, a lot of people were struggling with depression/suicidal thoughts, including myself. I found myself trying to help other people when I could barely help myself most of the time. I talked more people out of giving up than I care to say, and I completely agree with the fact that these survivors need more access to resources. There are a plethora of hot lines, but they're all to talk you down. In my experience, it's not very often that when a person is suicidal, they can think clear enough to call a hot line. I have just been lucky enough to be talking to someone at the right time in order to calm them down. Nothing makes you feel more alone than when you've woken up after trying to commit suicide, and everyone avoids the discussion. Of course, it's really awkward, I get it, the person literally tried to kill themselves. It's scary. But why do you think they tried to do that in the first place? Isolation after a suicide attempt can be detrimental; if you find yourself in the situation where you're talking to someone about their suicide attempt, try to be patient. Remind them that things will get better, even though that's, like, the last thing they want to hear. I don't know, but whenever I think about the fact that science exists (ex. gravity) whether you believe it exists or not, it reminds me that happiness exists, whether you believe it exists or not. It's really basic, and it won't work for anyone, (obviously) but it's the same concept. Anyway, this relates to the concept of Alienation that we will be discussing next unit because it discusses isolation and the estrangement that people who attempt suicide feel before and after the attempt. Although the situation is different in Never Let Me Go, Kathy H. is alienated from the rest of the world, like a person who attempts suicide. This is only slightly different because Kathy H. doesn't feel alienated while a person who attempts suicide does. Dual nature is a concept that we talked about last unit that shows up in Jekyll and Hyde as well as this topic. Jekyll and a person contemplating suicide both face internal battles, and sometimes the negative side wins (in Jekyll and Hyde it would be Hyde, while in this topic, it would be the suicide attempt). It is a constant struggle that causes people in both situations (Jekyll and Hyde and the person contemplating suicide) to feel like they can't talk to anyone for various reasons, and causes them to shut themselves off from the rest of the world when they should be seeking help.
