Pont des Arts, Paris, 1906. Increasing Anxiety in Paris: The Number of Suicides on the Rise
A woman who jumped off of the Pont des Arts bridge is rescued from the Seine River. The dramatic events that took place on Rue Saint-Sébastien and the Pont des Arts illustrate the increase in suicide rates in Paris. The surge in crime, reported cases of madness, and the economic crisis leaving many in abject poverty, were among the main reasons for this angst, which spread around a city that was in the throes of unbridled growth. It was not unusual to read about suicides in Paris's papers such as Le Petit Journal, Le Petit Parisien, Le Figaro or La Dépêche, which reported on them quite graphically, further heightening the pervasive sense of anxiety in the city.