Ludwig Van Beethoven: Beethoven's Death Wish

S1 E4: Ludwig van Beethoven was going deaf, but more than his hearing was at stake, as Professor Robert Greenberg uncovers in this episode. From an early age, his father exploited him and his talents for monetary gain, leaving a young Beethoven physically and psychologically abused. Beethoven came to hate his father and, by extension, authority figures of every kind. Impatient and rude on his good days, and a full-tilt paranoid on his bad days, Beethoven was an emotional mess. In October 1802, the 31 year old Beethoven seriously considered committing suicide after withdrawing from the world due to his increasing deafness.