History DespairEventHorizon / Literature

--->'''Tyrion:''' "One whispered word had done what fists and clubs could not; it had broken him."
** ''Literature/FireAndBlood'' has Aegon II's wife, Helaena Targaryen, who has to watch her older son, Jaehaerys, beheaded... right after approving her younger son, Maelor, to die in his place. She is never the same afterwards, refusing to sleep with her husband or look at Maelor, as it will constantly remind her of the time when she sentenced him to die. She commits suicide a year later.

* ''Literature/TheHungerGames'': Katniss Everdeen crosses the line in ''Catching Fire'' when she realizes Haymitch only kept his promise to Peeta. Pushed over the edge after [[spoiler:[[DoomedHometown District Twelve is nuked]]]]. She gets a bit better over the course of ''Mockingjay'', but gets hit ''hard'' again after [[spoiler:Prim's death]].

* ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire'': In ''A Storm of Swords'', Catelyn Stark goes into [[spoiler: the Red Wedding, having lost her husband, one daughter hostage, the other missing and suspected to be dead]] and believing two of her three sons are dead. [[spoiler: So, when eldest son Robb is cut down before her, she ''completely fucking loses it'', clawing at her face and [[LaughingMad laughing hysterically]] even as her treacherous bannermen round on her. When she's later brought BackFromTheDead, well... [[RoaringRampageOfRevenge she hates]]. [[CameBackWrong Constantly]].]]

** It's implied that Rand's EvilCounterpart Moridin crossed this long ago; faced with the idea of EternalRecurrence, he decided that [[OmnicidalManiac destroying the world]] was a kinder fate. [[spoiler: Pretty much confirmed in the last book, which shows that Moridin is a full-on DeathSeeker who can't bear the though of existing any longer as someone as horrible as himself, and he intends to drag the world down with him. He gets what he sought, but the world is spared]].

* The titular hero in ''Bollywood/{{Devdas}}'' loses all hope after ChildhoodSweetheart Paro marries someone else. Made worse by the fact that it wouldn't have happened if he'd been able to stand up to [[ParentalMarriageVeto his father]]. And it gets worse.

* In ''Literature/TheGreatGatsby'', [[spoiler: George Wilson]] goes over this line after [[spoiler: Myrtle]] dies.

* Haik has long passed this in ''Literature/TheCrocodileGod.'' As a sea-god of the Tagalog tribe in the Philippines, the effects of Spain's colonization on him [[ForegoneConclusion are a major theme of the story.]] Once respected and deeply loved by his people as both [[ShoutOut "the whale-rider"]] and [[CharacterTitle "the crocodile-god,"]] Haik didn't take it well when the bulk of said followers were ''massacred,'' and the rest converted to Catholicism out of self-preservation. However, it was when [[ImperiledInPregnancy his heavily-pregnant mortal wife Mirasol was shot by her Spanish employer]] and [[AdultFear their whale-goddess daughter was stillborn]] that he finally plunged past the DespairEventHorizon and [[ThatManIsDead refused to answer to his "whale-rider" epithet.]] By the year 2017, the now Fil-American Mirasol is TheOnlyBeliever left and their ReincarnationRomance has been saddled with a GroundhogDayLoop of reuniting, but [[StarCrossedLovers getting separated]] or [[AdultFear irreparably traumatized.]] When Mirasol tries to get him to break the cycle, [[HopeIsScary he doesn't want to because he's afraid he'll lose her for good.]] This is not unfounded, since he points out that [[AdultFear their first daughter has REFUSED to reincarnate since her death was so traumatic.]] As of Chapter 7, he gets floored when Mirasol says that [[spoiler: the other gods are mobilizing to look for him,]] since his response is:

* Richard Shannon wife in OnlySuperhuman was killed right in front of him causing him to go into HeroicBSOD. Which he was only broken out of when Arkady reminded him that his daughter still needed him. Her blaming him for her mothers death sent him over this.

** It's implied that Rand's EvilCounterpart Moridin crossed this long ago; faced with the idea of EternalRecurrance, he decided that [[OmnicidalManiac destroying the world]] was a kinder fate. [[spoiler: Pretty much confirmed in the last book, which shows that Moridin is a full-on DeathSeeker who can't bear the though of existing any longer as someone as horrible as himself, and he intends to drag the world down with him. He gets what he sought, but the world is spared]].

** For the surviving Hogwarts defenders near the end of ''Literature/HarryPotterAndTheDeathlyHallows'', the Despair Event Horizon is [[spoiler:seeing Hagrid carrying Harry's "dead" body.]] Despite this, Neville's courage manages to rally them, and they surge back to continue the fight.

** For the surviving Hogwarts defenders near the end of ''Literature/HarryPotterAndTheDeathlyHallows'', the Despair Event Horizon is [[spoiler:seeing Hagrid carrying Harry's "dead" body.]]

* Haik has long passed this in ''Literature/TheCrocodileGod.'' As a sea-god of the Tagalog tribe in the Philippines, the effects of Spain's colonization on him [[ForegoneConclusion are a major theme of the story.]] Once respected and deeply loved by his people as both [[ShoutOut "the whale-rider"]] and [[CharacterTitle "the crocodile-god,"]] [[CaptainObvious Haik didn't take it well]] when the bulk of said followers were ''massacred,'' and the rest converted to Catholicism out of self-preservation. However, it was when [[ImperiledInPregnancy his heavily-pregnant mortal wife Mirasol was shot by her Spanish employer]] and [[AdultFear their whale-goddess daughter was stillborn]] that he finally plunged past the DespairEventHorizon and [[ThatManIsDead refused to answer to his "whale-rider" epithet.]] By the year 2017, the now Fil-American Mirasol is TheOnlyBeliever left and their ReincarnationRomance has been saddled with a GroundhogDayLoop of reuniting, but [[StarCrossedLovers getting separated]] or [[AdultFear irreparably traumatized.]] When Mirasol tries to get him to break the cycle, [[HopeIsScary he doesn't want to because he's afraid he'll lose her for good.]] This is not unfounded, since he points out that [[AdultFear their first daughter has REFUSED to reincarnate since her death was so traumatic.]] As of Chapter 7, he gets floored when Mirasol says that [[spoiler: the other gods are mobilizing to look for him,]] since his response is:

* Discussed in ''Literature/WorldWarZ'', as people start going to bed at night and just not waking up, with no apparent cause other than complete loss of will to keep going.

** Tolkien loved these. ''Literature/TheSilmarillion'' in particular is rife with them. Fingolfin passes the point of no return when it appears that the power of the allied Elven princedoms is destroyed, which leads him to [[spoiler:[[CrowningMomentOfAwesome challenge]] the BigBad to [[CombatByChampion single combat]], with [[SenselessSacrifice predictable results]].]] Maedhros spends almost the entire book looking like he's [[ButtMonkey about to hit it]] and then [[TraumaCongaLine keeps going]]; [[spoiler:the [[DrivenToSuicide final nail in the coffin]] is the realization that all of that [[MoralEventHorizon killing people]] was for nothing]]. Niënor doesn't take the news that she's [[spoiler:accidentally [[BrotherSisterIncest married to her brother]] [[DrivenToSuicide very well at all]]; neither does the [[HeroicBSOD brother in question]].]] Maglor, unusually, [[spoiler:survives his Despair Event Horizon]], but only by [[spoiler:[[YouCantGoHomeAgain leaving the storyline]] to WalkTheEarth and angst]].

* In Creator/JohnCWright's ''Literature/CountToTheEschaton'', Ctesibius does not even need guards; he will not attempt to escape. He has despaired since the day his order attempted to take over the world with [[GrayGoo Golden Goo]] and failed.

* In the ''Literature/TheDivineComedy'', Cavalcante faints and loses speech from despair upon learning that his son died. It's worth noting that that Cavalcante manages to find this new depth of despair while burning in Hell for heresy.

*** When Sidious abandons him to be killed, Dooku realizes that all his accomplishments, victories, and plans amount to nothing because he was being bred for one sole purpose: Anakin's first murder.

* Early into the ''Literature/SeekerBears'' book ''Great Bear Lake'', Kallik begins [[DespairEventHorizon losing her will to live]]. She has to resist the temptation to drown herself, like her mother had, and be with her. It isn't until she hears the ice spirits calling her brothers name that she regains her spirit to go on and be reunited with sibling.

** It's revealed in Chapter 8 that he'd already lost a ''lot'' of family members due to Catholic conversion--his five cousins, his aunt and uncle, and his older sister. [[AdultFear No wonder he gave up after his daughter died.]]

** It's revealed in Chapter 8 that he'd lost a ''lot'' of family members due to Catholic conversion--his five cousins, his aunt and uncle, and his older sister. [[AdultFear No wonder he rocketed past the horizon after his daughter died.]]