Learning About Suicide from the Diary of Cesare Pavese

Abstract

The study of the diaries of suicides presents an opportunity for greater insight into the psychodynamics of suicide than does the study of suicide notes. The present study analyzed the last year of the published diary of the Italian writer, Cesare Pavese (1908-1950), to identify changes in the content over the last year of his life. The last year of the published diary was analyzed using the Linguistic Word Count program. The proportion of words related to positive emotions and optimism increased over the last year of Pavese's life, and the entries became less complex and more self-oriented. The results confirm the changes in mood documented in diaries and letters from suicides in previous research, and extend the research to published diaries of famous individuals and in transition.