History Main / DeathByDespair

* TheCaptain of ''HMS Ulysses'' in the novel of the same title, the first published work by Alastair [=MacLean=] of ''Literature/TheGunsOfNavarone'' fame, suffers a variant of this. Soon after passing over his own personal DespairEventHorizon as his increasingly battered command limps towards the relative safety of Russia along with the dwindling remains of the convoy she and her crew have been struggling to protect, he's found on deck in nothing but his pyjamas and bare feet, [[BodyHorror horribly stricken by frostbite as a result.]] As the narration puts it (paraphrased from memory):

* Happens to the Aboriginal boy in ''Walkabout''. He believes the girl's fear of him is because she's seen the spirit of Death on him (in fact, she's just afraid because she's been taught Aboriginals are savages and never actually met one before). Because he thinks death is coming for him, he then more or less wills himself to die. More precisely, he catches the flu from the girl's brother but has neither the inherited resistance nor the will to fight it. (The movie is more explicitly DeathByDespair: he hangs himself after the failure of his courtship dance.)

* Milly in ''The Wings of the Dove'' is ill throughout the book but eventually dies due to a broken heart.

[[caption-width-right:350:Crushed by the weight of his own sins.]]

* In ''VideoGame/MagiaRecordPuellaMagiMadokaMagicaSideStory'', this is implied to be how Ui Tamaki died in every timeline that ''isn't'' the one the game takes place in. After hearing about the death of [[spoiler:her older sister [[TheHero Iroha]]]], it's implied that her previously-existing illness became so bad that she died of it. [[spoiler:And the only reason she survived in the game's timeline is because Iroha [[ForWantOfANail tripped on a pebble on her way to school and avoided the car accident that killed her]], which allowed her to form a contract with Kyubey and wish for Ui's illness to be cured.]]

* In ''Film/ImitationOfLife1934'', Delilah the black housekeeper weakens and dies of nothing more than despair after her passing-white daughter, Peola, cuts Delilah out of her life so she can continue to pass as white.
* In ''Film/ImitationOfLife1959'', much the same happens to Annie, the analogous character to Delilah. In this version, Annie agrees to let her daughter Sarah Jane go because she comes to understand why Sarah Jane wants to pass (so that she can live her life unimpeded by racism), but the emotional impact of this kills her shortly thereafter.

* ''The Bronze Horseman'' by Paullina Simons. An elderly man tells Tatiana how he spent hours trying to repair a faulty generator, with the [[SecretPolice NKVD]] standing over him ready to execute him for 'sabotage' if he didn't. He succeeds, but asks if it isn't bad enough with starvation and the Nazis trying to kill them. Tatiana finds him dead the next day.

* In Sir Creator/ArthurConanDoyle's ''A Physiologist's Wife'', the eponymous physiologist dies of this in the end, much to the disbelief of those examining the body.

* In ''TabletopGame/RoleMaster'', critical hits on the "depression damage" table can cause the target to assume a fetal position on the floor and literally lose the will to live, dying by despair.
* The Villain Iron Legacy from ''TabletopGame/SentinelsOfTheMultiverse'' can cause this with the Demoralizing Presence card. Not only does it increase the damage Iron Legacy deals by 1, but at the end of each of his turns, all of the hero targets deal 1 Psychic damage to themselves. It's especially dangerous if any hero has damage buffs up (such as Legacy, Naturalist, Chrono-Ranger, and Knyfe).
* Durthu from ''TabletopGame/WarhammerFantasy'' has weaponised his own despair and self-loathing, projecting it as a missile attack called "The Lamentations of Despair". The sheer force of his grief kills anyone who comes into contact with them.

* ''TabletopGame/DeadOfWinter'': Some traumatic events cause survivors to [[DamageTyping take Despair tokens]], which count against their HitPoints just like physical Wounds and can cause their death. Despair also tends to be trickier to heal.

* In Rain's ending in ''VideoGame/MortalKombat11'', [[spoiler:it is revealed that his father, the Edenian God Argus, had an affair with a mortal woman, Amara. After Rain's birth, Argus gave a newborn Rain away to a poor family while telling Amara that Rain was stillborn, she died from grief. Upon learning this, Rain gets even by killing Argus and his sons Taven and Daegon, and allows Argus' wife Delia to live so she could experience the same pain and despair his mother did.]]

* In episode 10 of ''Anime/SpacePatrolLuluco'', Nova tears out and shatters Luluco's Aflutter Jewel (which is the physical embodiment of her love for him), causing her to [[LiteralMetaphor die of a broken heart]]. Amazingly, she comes back to life after regaining her hope.

* ''VideoGame/FireEmblemGenealogyOfTheHolyWar'' gives this as the demise of [[spoiler:Tailtiu, a seemingly bright and cheerful young mage in the first generation, by having her survive the horrific Battle of Belhalla which took the lives of many of her friends and possible husband, get separated from her son and then endure physical and mental abuse by her completely evil sister-in-law to protect her infant daughter. All these took such a great toll on her psyche that she degraded to a sorrowful woman that went no day without crying until at one point she succumbed to illness after losing her will to live.]]

** Kenny's only death in season sixteen was the result of terminal boredom induced by crappy ziplining and horseriding experiences topped off with a tedious boat trip.

** ''[[Manga/JojosBizarreAdventureStoneOcean Stone Ocean]]'': After Weather Report manages to use Ungalo's own Stand powers to [[HoistByHisOwnPetard negate itself]], Ungalo was overcome with despair at the thought of regressing back into his previous drug-addled life and quickly died.

TruthInTelevision, to an extent, in that someone who doesn't care whether he lives or dies may start neglecting his health and slip into a downward spiral leading to death. A mirrored version is also noted in elderly couples in ill health where both will [[NormallyIWouldBeDeadNow seem to stave off terminal conditions]] and endure uncomfortable treatments [[WorthLivingFor for each other]], but [[TogetherInDeath "let go" when the other has passed]]. Also, there is a phenomenon known as "Broken Heart Syndrome" (or, [[SesquipedalianLoquaciousness to use the technical name]], "[[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Takotsubo_cardiomyopathy Takotsubo cardiomyopathy]]") where sudden, excessive stress can weaken the cardiac muscle, which can lead to heart attacks and acute heart failure. It's rare, but not impossible. That said, Administrivia/NoRealLifeExamplesPlease

* Barely averted in Bellemere's backstory in ''Manga/OnePiece''. She had fought in a terrible battle that destroyed a coastal city and was just waiting for her almost sure demise... then she saw little Nojiko carrying baby Nami in her arms and regained the will to live, taking the little girls in.

** It could also be said that this is what almost happened to Riza. When Lust made the BadassBoast that she had killed Roy Mustang, Riza went on a brief RoaringRampageOfRevenge until she ran out of bullets... then slumped to the ground, weeping and ''waiting to be killed.'' She only recovered the will to live when she realized that Roy had survived.

* In ''Anime/DragonBallZ'', the stress of his people being slaughtered by [[BigBad Frieza]] and his forces causes this to happen to the Grand Elder of Planet Namek. To be fair, he was ''extremely'' old and had been dying slowly for quite a while, so it amounted to dying a matter of minutes before he would have died 'naturally'. It nonetheless becomes a critical plot point because Planet Namek's Dragon Balls disappear when he dies. Luckily, when Kami and Popo use Earth's Dragon Balls to resurrect everyone Frieza's forces murdered, this brings back the Elder for the amount of time his life was shortened by.
* Tomoya Okazaki of ''Anime/{{CLANNAD}} ~After Story~''. When his daughter, his new reason to live after Nagisa's [[DeathByChildbirth death]], dies in his arms, he collapses in the snow, presumably dead from a broken heart. But he gets better. [[GainaxEnding Really]].

* Kaede Fuyou from ''Anime/{{Shuffle}}'' was close to this as a young girl, after her mother's death in an accident. Rin had to lie to her by putting the blame on himself so she'd recover the will to live.
* Almost happens to Liechtenstein in ''Webcomic/HetaliaAxisPowers'', after UsefulNotes/WorldWarI destroys her lands and kills a good part of her people. Fortunately, Switzerland finds her when she's about to give in and let herself die, and takes her in into his home (symbolizing the union between both countries, which still survives to this day).
* In ''Anime/CTheMoneyAndSoulOfPossibility'', Entres who go bankrupt lose their future and usually commit suicide afterward.
* Barely averted in Bellemere's backstory in ''Manga/OnePiece''. She had fought in a terrible battle that destroyed a coastal city and was just waiting for her almost sure demise... then she saw little Nojiko carrying baby Nami in her arms and regained the will to live, taking the little girls in.
* The succubi of ''Manga/RosarioPlusVampire'' can literally die of heartbreak. Considering that Kurumu is in love with Tsukune who's in love with Moka, this can potentially happen to her as well.
* Literally occurs in ''Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica'' in the new world in the endings. A Magical Girl's magic is somewhat based on her level of hope, so if they run out of magic (or hope), they die, and it's speculated that they might [[AscendedToAHigherPlaneOfExistence ascend to Goddess Madoka's Plane of Existence]]. This is a step up from the original timeline, where they turn into the very {{Eldritch Abomination}}s that they fight.
* ''Anime/RevolutionaryGirlUtena'' was close to this after her parents died but thankfully her prince (or Touga) saves her.
* In ''Anime/SCryed'', Ayase Terada goes out this way when she learns that her brother is dead (through a wireless heart monitor on her wrist). It might be justified since she went through a process to refine her power which is said to drastically shorten lifespan in some cases, but aside from some scarring looks perfectly healthy. Kazuma, who she was fighting, didn't even get a chance to land a hit.

* In episode 10 of ''Anime/SpacePatrolLuluco'', Nova tears out and shatters Luluco's Aflutter Jewel (which is the physical embodiment of her love for him), causing her to [[LiteralMetaphor die of a broken heart]]. Amazingly, she comes back to life after regaining her hope.
* Heavily implied to be the fates of the protagonists of ''Manga/GirlsLastTour''. After a perilous journey through their AfterTheEnd world, they reach the top of their LayeredMetropolis and find...nothing. The two eat their last bit of food, go to sleep and are heavily implied to pass on during their slumber from the reveal that their journey was ultimately pointless.
* Invoked in ''Literature/Overlord2012''. The {{Lich}} protagonist has a skill called Despair Aura. It has 5 levels of intensity, each inflicting increasingly debilitating StatusEffects. The fifth level [[OneHitKill instantly kills]] those who fail to resist.

* Invoked in ''LightNovel/{{Overlord}}''. The {{Lich}} protagonist has a skill called Despair Aura. It has 5 levels of intensity, each inflicting increasingly debilitating StatusEffects. The fifth level [[OneHitKill instantly kills]] those who fail to resist.

TruthInTelevision, to an extent, in that someone who doesn't care whether he lives or dies may start neglecting his health and slip into a downward spiral leading to death. A mirrored version is also noted in elderly couples in ill health where both will [[NormallyIWouldBeDeadNow seem to stave off terminal conditions]] and endure uncomfortable treatments [[WorthLivingFor for each other]], but [[TogetherInDeath "let go" when the other has passed]]. Also, there is a phenomenon known as "Broken Heart Syndrome" (or, [[SesquipedalianLoquaciousness to use the technical name]], "[[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Takotsubo_cardiomyopathy Takotsubo cardiomyopathy]]") where sudden, excessive stress can weaken the cardiac muscle, which can lead to heart attacks and acute heart failure. It's rare, but not impossible. That said, '''Administrivia/NoRealLifeExamplesPlease We really don't need a mess of gushing and "Poor X!" gossip.'''

* In Rain's ending in ''VideoGame/MortalKombat11'', [[spoiler:it is revealed that his father, the Edenian God Argus, had an affair with a mortal woman, Amara. After Rain's birth, Argus gave a newborn Rain away to a poor family while telling Amara that Rain was stillborn, resulting in this trope happening as she died from grief. Upon learning this, Rain gets even by killing Argus and his sons Taven and Daegon, and allows Argus' wife Delia to live so she could experience the same pain and despair his mother did.]]

* ''VisualNovel/CorpseParty'' features [[TheCorruption The Darkening]], which takes over a person completely when they lose all hope. While they don't technically die, they're made into mindless slaves of [[spoiler: the StringyHairedGhostGirl,]] and can never leave [[DarkWorld Heavenly Host]], so it's as good as death for them. Notably, this is arguably a ''better'' option than dying, as death causes your spirit to feel the pain you felt at death for all eternity.

* Literally occurs in ''Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica'' in the new world in the endings, a Magical Girl's magic is somewhat based on her level of hope. So if they run out of magic (or hope) they die, and it's speculated that they might [[AscendedToAHigherPlaneOfExistence ascend to Goddess Madoka's Plane of Existence]]. This is a step up from the original timeline, where they turn into the very {{Eldritch Abomination}}s that they fight.

* ''Webcomic/LovingTheReaper'': The mother swan whose eggs were crushed by teenagers is so heartbroken that she dies and welcomes death without any hesitation.