Biographies - Death of a Subject
The Different Ways in Which a Death Scene Can be Written
May 18, 2008
Due to their very nature, an inevitable part of all biographies is a death scene. Death is the ultimate conclusion to the subject's personal life but need not necessarily be the conclusion of the book. Here are some options as to how and where the death of the subject should be placed.
The Final Chapter
The most obvious, though not the most popular, choice is to place a death at the very end of a book. However as the subject of a biography will usually be an interesting or important character there will often be social or political changes or consequences in the wake of their death. This is the reason that many biographies do not end with the death scene.
The subjects which work best with a last chapter death scene are those outside of the popular eye either due to their reclusive nature or the times they lived in for example pre 20th Century authors such as Jane Austen whose death can easily be followed by a one paragraph concluding thought. Subjects who are not suitable for this style of ending are those such as Malcolm X whose death created social and political instability or John F. Kennedy whose death led to a hunt for his killer and various conspiracy theories.
The Three Quarter Death
For figures whose death had an immediate or lasting impact upon the world or whose life began a chain of socially important events the perfect place to write the death scene is about three quarters through the book. This leaves a final quarter in which to establish why the subject's life or death was so important and how it impacted upon the future.
A perfect example would be Princess Diana whose death changed the course and public opinion of the British monarchy and of which conspiracy theories are still ongoing and very public trials were held.
To Die at the Beginning
For a little used twist why not put the death in the first chapter? This is a great method if writing about someone who lived a long life and died a natural death which caused no ripples in society. It is also a great way to get a reader to connect with a subject about which little is commonly known.
By writing a full first chapter around the death of the subject the reader becomes emotionally invested right from the start and as a result wants to read through to the end. An approach which says “this is a real person who died a real death leaving family behind. Now you have shared the most intimate event in their life, don't you want to know what came before?”.
A Factual or an Emotional Death
This is completely the decision of the author and depends entirely upon how they want the reader to connect with the subject.
A factual, objective death scene is best used:
- If the book is of an academic nature
- If the author wants the reader to see the subject as inhuman e.g. a serial killer
- If the subject is from far back in history and little is known of their family, loved ones or death
An emotional death scene is best used:
- If the subject led an emotionally charged life
- If the author wants the reader to connect with the subject on a personal level
- If the author wants their readers to see the subject as a real person instead of a media characature or demonized figure
- If the author wants to successfully portray a long dead historical figure as a once living, breathing and feeling person
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