Suicide prevention in Third Eye Blind's Jumper and Sharon Olds' Summer Solstice New York

¶ … Poetry in Third Eye Blind's Jumper and Sharon Olds' Summer Solstice New York

Songs and works of poetry are often the subject of the expression of some of humanities darker emotions. The act of suicide represents a culmination of such negative emotions to a point in which an individual wishes to take their own life. It is often the case that someone is temporarily flooded with such intense negative emotions that they consider suicide in a rash decision. While many of the artistic expressions deal with death, suffering, and suicidal thoughts, fewer seem to concentrate on more of a preventive side of such emotions. Two poems were chosen because each of them takes a relatively unique approach to suicidal people. The first poem was a song, Jumper by Third Eye Blind, is a song that represents a story told from the perspective of someone trying to talk down a suicidal jumper. The next song, Sharon Old's Summer Solstice New York is told from a third person perspective about a group of police officers who successfully convince someone to move away from a ledge. Each of these songs will be critically analyzed individual and then finally compared against each other.

Third Eye Blind's Jumper

Third Eye Blind is a band which was formed in the 1990s from San Francisco that plays alternative rock music. They have won many awards a have had several hit singles. The band's lyrics are generally composed by one of the members of the band who is the lead vocalist as well as songwriter. They have produced five major albums and have shuffled many of the group's members however the lead vocalist and songwriter still remain.

The song Jumper is about a boy who commits suicide because they feel like they don't belong in there group. The person who tells the story from their point-of-view asks the boy to step back from the ledge and cut ties with all the lies that he was living in. This can be taken to mean that his head is filled with thoughts that are negative and may not be true. It is often the case that a rush of negative emotions can hit someone all at once but, with enough time, these feelings also can leave just as quickly. The person telling the story does not seem to be worried about making friends evident by the fact that he states that if the jumper does not want to see him again that he would understand.

Many people misinterpret the song to mean that the person does not jump. However, near the middle of the song there is a line that seems to indicate that the person in the story did actually die. The line states that "Well he's on the table, And he's gone to code" which would seem to be that the person was on a hospital table and the doctors called the code which generally means that the person has passed away. After the person commits suicide then there are also ramifications for the people that were close to him which is referenced by the line "Everyone's got to face down the demons."

Discussion

These two works have many similarities as well as some differences. One similarity is the fact that the attention of the work is focused on a brief moment. For example, in Jumper the narrator does not care if the man does not like him at a later date and is more worried about the anxiety in the moment. The same can be said about the poem by Olds. In the poem the police officers seem to be wrapped up in the moment however when the moment is over they show signs of relief. The police officers take the time to engage in a social smoke with the suicidal man. The author uses imagery that suggests that the person might be blind to some of the simple pleasures in life which actually defines much of her work (Poets). She has also been known to break traditional norms known to female poets (Monaghan).

Both authors seem to also have a liberal and open view on life as well. Stephan Jenkins for example loves drugs, distrusts the Republican Party, and thinks that the Democrats are pathetic (Perry and Russolilo). It seems that both authors have a great deal of empathy for other people. They can put themselves in the mind of others who are struggling with the negative aspects of what it means to be human. Such a position is nearly a prerequisite for understanding the human condition which is the cornerstone of many creative works. Instead of just judging someone and dismissing their position, both authors try to understand some of the subtle aspects to what drove the person to the brink of suicide; or in the case of Jumper, to actually committing the act.