NOW YOU SEE ME, NOW YOU DON’T: WHY DO PEOPLE COMMIT “PSEUDOCIDE”?

Pseudocide, “the act of faking one’s own death,” has existed and been committed for centuries. There are many scenarios that might come to mind about why and how someone would concoct and attempt to carry out this type of fraud. Some reasons that, to some people, are obvious and others that are beyond fathomable.

Often, people who attempt pseudocide lack a true comprehension of the potential consequences of their actions and, in most cases, knowledge of how best to plan for and successfully execute their escapades. Those who attempt this façade come from all walks of life, from ordinary, everyday citizens to notable authors to those in the corporate hierarchy.

Why Do They Do It?

Is it to change identity and leave behind an unhappy life? To escape conviction of a crime? To profess affection? Or is it to escape an undesirable personal situation? Yes, it is. All of these are reasons why people fake (or have faked) their deaths. Of course there are other reasons, some of which might cause one to question the rationale — even mental stability — of the perpetrators, or liken their stunts to juvenile pranks rather than fraud. But financial woes and avoiding incarceration take the top spots.

To Find Out Whether They Are Liked

An eighteenth-century wealthy and self-proclaimed “Lord,” Timothy Dexter, had more than enough money to throw away, but his peers shunned him because of his illiteracy, lack of education and eccentricities, leaving him with a ruptured ego and feelings of disrespect. To find out whether his peers’ disdain was mirrored by the public, Dexter contrived an elaborate plan to commit pseudocide, which included organizing his ostentatious funeral. Approximately 3,000 attended, including his family, who was in on the hoax. He died — for real — six years later, never receiving the respect he coveted.

 

Why did Detterling fake his own death? He saw it as the only way out after losing so emphatically to Gene.