schadenfreude

No I am not exactly fond of largely misunderstood words or worse, obscure words… I just realized why I never read newspapers and therefore I decided to write this entry. Do you realize why yellow journalism arrived? It’s simple really– there was a demand for it. People relied on the cable t.v. to wash over their hapless existence in a largely consumerist world, people then saw some people reaching those heights– Their homes and their world became our Elysian fields. What did participation in capitalism guarantee? A beautiful home, well educated meritocratic friends, a host of likeable hobbies, a short marriage but more importantly a dull rage aimed at those Elysian heroes. Do you think you are exempted from this behavior– most likely not! When you read your morning newspaper do people interest pieces draw your attention along with the usual slew of murders, government budget shortcomings and industrial scams– do you like to flip through the Delhi times? Soon this habit becomes more than curiosity and you become an avid reader of gossip articles (well if you don’t I congratulate you sincerely but I suppose you don’t go to the movies either) and well a sort of semi celebrity stalker. I do it in a modest capacity simply because I chose to completely forgo of the newspaper in its entirety. It isn’t exactly an achievement since my unlimited internet connection necessitates virtual stalking opportunities every time I log in and well I am guilty of the charge. People follow celebrities and their lives, become their biggest fans and for what? Well among other reasons there is the phenomenon of schadenfreude. It is that feeling that we indulge in when we take pleasure in someone else’s pain; it is almost subconsciously driven. It is only appropriate that the Germans invented the word and they did! Schadenfreude isn’t a terrible phenomenon in the sense that you do not glom onto others’ misfortunes but that it perversely fuels the oxytocin hormone which provides pleasant reception. The perfect example is a person’s reaction to pathos– listening to Beethoven or reading Romeo and Juliet or watching Titanic… after the initial tears there is an overwhelming intensity that fills any person which is pleasant. That is schadenfreude at work. Now what do newspapers have in common with this word? Celebrities and their misfortunes either through a break up or court cases found on the infamous page 3! I figured out that we engage in schadenfreude most frequently with regard to celebrities mainly because they are those Elysian heroes we fear, envy, despise and need. They are that dream every middle class family, every slumlord, every barber ascribe to– they fill that neat hole in a life made comfortable with machinations but missing meaning. Do I really care that this is absolutely belittling?