Napoleon Bonaparte already said that “envy is a declaration of inferiority. “But if someone who’s facing difficulties is someone who’s hurt you or just doesn’t like you, you may be glad the other person doesn’t get along. is inferiority, is it envy? No, according to science, it’s Schadenfreude.
I’m not saying any more. To some extent, it is normal and natural to feel a little joy at certain misfortunes, that is exactly what this German word means, which defines the curious feeling that we exhibit here, let us find out a little more about it.
“If there was only one immortal man, the envious would murder him. -Chumy Chúmez-
As we have said, this term in German is a word composed of two that together mean joy at harm, the damage is sned in German and the joy is Freude, but is it normal, or is it a positive thing, to feel that?
The truth is that their meanings may seem malicious, envious or show their inferiority. However, the feeling does not necessarily denote the pettiness or ill intentions of the person who feels it. If evil happens to a person who does not deserve good, because he has done evil or something, the feeling would be related to a feeling of restoring natural order, somehow bringing back balance.
In addition, we are talking about a reaction that could even be described as natural, this is because dopamine is present, the neurotransmitter linked to reward and pleasure, so if we see suffering someone unpleasant is as a reward for us, a reward.
However, the psychologist and researcher Aguston Ibáez, from the Center for Neurosciences of Adolfo Ibáez University, considers that this feeling is part of human moral emotions, that is, it would be related to the social comparison we make with others, in addition to the value that we also make. In this Schadenfreude differs from fear, sadness and joy.
Following this line of thought, there are particular reasons why this well-being occurs in the face of the misfortune of others, as we will see soon, if every time we find this natural reaction to certain situations, there is no direct participation on our part in the evil that has happened or for it to continue, there is nothing negative about it.
These situations are a relief to us. In other words, if evil happens to that person, it means it doesn’t happen to me.
So, even if something happens to an unknown person, such as tripping in the street or dropping water through the window over his head, we know he might have been with us and he didn’t. In this sense, we may not only feel relief, but we may also end up laughing if we find grace in what has just happened.
Unfortunately, relief is not just one of the reasons for this temporary well-being; envy, especially in people who often feel it, is also one of the reasons.
Thus, the fact that someone who does not have a resource they need and has to ask someone else to find a rejection may already be more than enough to make them feel good about the discomfort of others. ? I don’t have it, but the other one didn’t, for example, it could also happen, so the absence of the other would alleviate a feeling of inferiority.
Low self-esteem can also motivate the emergence of this phenomenon, in fact, several studies have already made it clear that this way of seeing the evil of others that does not affect can serve to gain self-confidence.
However, it can also serve as a trigger for loss of confidence, as some people may look and realize that others are victims of bad luck, just like them, that is, it serves to reaffirm a situation, although for a moment I feel some relief for not being the only victims of misfortune.
Revenge couldn’t be lost here. When someone hurts us, if something bad happens to them soon after, we may feel that there has been a just punishment, almost as if we were seeing divine justice.
This can happen in different contexts. That is, this can happen in everyday life with friends, colleagues or even family members who are not among the most expensive, but also in more traumatic situations, even outside the law.
Have you ever felt Schadenfreude rejoice in the evil of others that happens to others who are not good to you or don’t like you?If so, you know this is totally normal, that you’re not a monster to feel it, not a worse person. It is a natural emotion, so, like all others, it must be heard and regulated so that its energy does not take hold of our actions or our thoughts.