Was he weak?

Yeah I thought he should've considered other options. And wasn't John selfish in not considering the effects of his death on others? Josie, his MOTHER (in the book, Josie quotes "There's not an hour that goes by when I don't think of John but then I remember that there won't be a minute when his mother won't think of him"), his friends. I mean, sure life goes on after you've lost someone but it's never quite the same.

His weakness lies not in the actual ACT of his sucide but in his inability to forsee that suicide is a permanent solution to a problem which is not the end of the world. It shows that simply having abundant ability in academics and sports and everything that we see as being so important is not nessacarily useful unless you know how to stand on your own two feet. John didn't. I maintain my opinion of weakness and sefishness on THIS point. However, I do agree that being brought up in such a stiff and controlled environment would be very difficult and would not be adequate for a young boy to learn important life skills such as inner strength. So, ultimately, his suicide was brought about by his father. His father effectively instilled weakness in him. I understand the workings of depression, and am aware of the difficulty individuals face in thinking of the future, in sorting out their thoughts. This was why John was unable to see that his suicide could be avoided.

We're one, but we're not the same...

I am utterly astounded by the depth of empathy and understanding shown by the above two posts.

Depression is the great leveller, it attacks the upper and lower classes alike.
Nobody has a monopoly on suffering.
He is not weak for having a mental illness, and it makes it all the more tragic that the darkness in his mind meant that he couldn't see any future or hope.

His wealth, prestige, prospects and abilities meant nothing. He was just a person who had lost hope.

Nobody can judge, nor should anybody. Unless you have been in that situation, you should keep your ill-informed opinions to yourself, and if you have, you are one of the few that have a right to comment.

I know someone asked if John was gay, based on the movie, on another thread as well.

As far as the book goes, there's no blatant implication that he was gay, but that doesn't mean he could not have been either. I was wondering about that too, even with all the "big crush in Year 10" talk he gives to Josie.

John was depressed, alone, and chained ( I think the his note in the book said it better than the movie). Given his status and affiliations, him being gay would be another facet. It's an interesting take at any rate.

The "buck up" argument is exactly what Josie assumes at first (but to her credit, she was in shock at the time). She has experienced her teenage ups and downs, and may have experienced depression too, but she doesn't understand the severity of John's depression.

John, with his status, intellect, and wealth, "has no reason to be sad", but yet he is severely depressed and feels alienated.

I ask, nearly every day, what reason/right do I have to feel this way? Depression has spared no one in my immediate family and my mother suspects that her mom was also severely depressed (among other things). The environment in my family isn't the best, and we do have a lot of problems that really hurt growing up. But at the same time, my dad isn't a deadbeat, he doesn't drive drunk, and he doesn't stay home from work to "sit with a bottle". He works six days a week and would do anything and everything to make sure my sisters and I have food and education. Despite my depression, I got excellent grades and ended up at a top school. My life, in that respect, isn't all that bad, but I am depressed and have been for a long time. I didn't ask for help for a long time either.

As a poster mentioned above, depression is the great leveler. You could be as rich and set for life as John was, or be poor "illegitimate" Josie.

That said, I really wish they had gone more the route of the book, at least concerning John, and fleshed out his character a bit. I wish they had Ivy as well.