8th APRIL 1994

Life is a fickle thing. We arrive into this world in screaming, agony and pain. We then grow up in hopefully in a mixture of happiness and sadness (if we were happy all the time, it would be too unreal, too Disney). We then depart this world in pain, tears, unhappiness and sadness. It's almost a vicious circle. For some though, the middle part of life is almost as bad as the beginning and the end, full of just sadness and unhappiness.

Whilst being hailed as the unofficial spokesperson for Generation X, Kurt Cobain, lead singer, guitarist and songwriter for grunge band Nirvana, felt that the public had misinterpreted his message and artistic vision. He struggled with heroin addiction, illness, depression, fame, his public image and the professional and lifelong personal pressures surrounding him.

On the 8th April 1994, Kurt Cobain, lead singer, guitarist and songwriter for Nirvana, role model and idol to numerous number of teens, committed suicide by shooting himself in the head.

Suicide as a concept and action has always confused me. I know that people commit suicide because they are depressed, sad and just generally really unhappy, but how could they not think about the consequences that their actions would have for other people? Are they really that lost within their own emotions that they just can't find the will to live for anybody or anything?

The circumstances of Cobain's death have become a topic of public fascination and debate. In other words, even in death his music and his life are still focus topics in the media. With the certain unknown facts surrounding his death, the public are still misinterpreting Cobain's life.

And here I think I can connect Cobain to journalism.

Journalism is about telling stories. A journalists job, as I have sort of started to learn, is to be fair and unbiased, but still want to tell a story that will make a difference. Ultimately that's what Cobain wanted to do. He wanted to use music as a medium for sharing his story, his emotions and thoughts, similar to that of the medium of text for journalists. Ultimately that's what anyone wants to do. They want to share their story and have it heard, if not public in their own small social group. But what happens when telling the story isn't enough any more? What happens when you get to the point in your life where you think, "no one is listening to my stories. No cares. Why am I writing them?" The only reason you hear about celebrity deaths is because journalists want to tell the story. Are there journalists out there committing suicide because they feel their story isn't being received or listened to by anyone? And from that is suicide the final story? Is it a medium for which people can say finally, once and for all,

"listen."




Image available: http://antebellumgallery.blogspot.com.au/2012/02/kurt-cobain-would-be-45-today.html