Schadenfreude

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The Three Stooges' comedy trademark was exaggerated slapstick routines where a performer's apparent pain created enjoyment and laughter among their audience.

Schadenfreude (IPA: [ˈʃaːdənˌfʁɔʏ̯də] De-schadenfreude.ogg Audio (German) (help·info)) is pleasure derived from the misfortunes of others. The word referring to this emotion has been borrowed from German by the English language[1] and is sometimes also used as a loanword by other languages.

Philosopher and sociologist Theodor Adorno defined schadenfreude as “largely unanticipated delight in the suffering of another which is cognized as trivial and/or appropriate.”[2]

Contents

[edit] Linguistic analysis

[edit] Spelling and etymology

In German, Schadenfreude is capitalized, as are all nouns. When used as a loanword in English, however, it is not, unless the origin of the word is meant to be emphasized. The corresponding German adjective is schadenfroh. The word derives from Schaden (damage, harm) and Freude (joy); Schaden derives from the Middle High German schade, from the Old High German scado. Freude comes from the Middle High German vreude, from the Old High German frewida, from froh, (happy). A distinction exists between "secret schadenfreude" (a private feeling) and "open schadenfreude" (Hohn, a German word roughly translated as "scorn") which is outright public derision.

[edit] English equivalents

Little-used English words synonymous with schadenfreude have been derived from the Greek word ἐπιχαιρεκακία.[3][4] Nathan Bailey's 18th-century Universal Etymological English Dictionary, for example, contains an entry for epicharikaky that gives its etymology as a compound of epi (upon), chaira (joy/charity/heart), and kakon (evil).[5][6] A popular modern collection of rare words, however, gives its spelling as "epicaricacy." [7]

A more common English expression with a similar meaning is 'Roman holiday', a metaphor taken from the poem "Childe Harold's Pilgrimage" by George Gordon, Lord Byron, where a gladiator in Ancient Rome expects to be "butcher'd to make a Roman holiday" while the audience would take pleasure from watching his suffering. The term suggests debauchery and disorder in addition to sadistic enjoyment.[8]

Another phrase with a meaning similar to Schadenfreude is "morose delectation" ("delectatio morosa" in Latin), meaning "the habit of dwelling with enjoyment on evil thoughts".[9] The medieval church taught morose delectation as a sin.[10][11] French writer Pierre Klossowski (1905-2001) maintained that the appeal of sadism is morose delectation.[12][13]

The term "schadenfreude" is often mentioned in connection with the Internet slang terms, "lulz" and "FAIL." These terms have slightly different meanings, however. The interjection "FAIL" is used to express and share public derision.[14] A recent NY Times article defines "lulz" as "the joy of disrupting another’s emotional equilibrium."[15] Dictionaries define "schadenfreude," however, as a pleasurable emotion resulting from the misfortune of others, with no implication that this emotion is publicly expressed or actively sought. [1][2]

[edit] Antonyms

The Buddhist concept of mudita, "sympathetic joy" or "happiness in another's good fortune," is cited as an example of the opposite of schadenfreude.[16][17] Alternatively envy, unhappiness in another's good fortune, could be considered the counterpart of schadenfreude. Completing the quartet is "unhappiness at another's misfortune", which may be termed pity or compassion.

[edit] Literary and philosophical analysis

In the Nicomachean Ethics, Aristotle used the term epikhairekakia (alternatively epikairekakia; ἐπιχαιρεκακία in Greek) as part of a triad of terms, in which epikhairekakia stands as the opposite of phthonos, and nemesis occupies the mean. Nemesis is "a painful response to another's undeserved good fortune," while phthonos is "a painful response to any good fortune," deserved or not. The epikhairekakos person actually takes pleasure in another's ill fortune.[18][19]

During the 17th century, Robert Burton wrote in his work The Anatomy of Melancholy, "Out of these two [the concupiscible and irascible powers] arise those mixed affections and passions of anger, which is a desire of revenge; hatred, which is inveterate anger; zeal, which is offended with him who hurts that he loves; and ἐπιχαιρεκακία, a compound affection of joy and hate, when we rejoice at other men's mischief, and are grieved at their prosperity; pride, self-love, emulation, envy, shame, &c., of which elsewhere."[20]

[edit] Scientific studies

A New York Times article in 2002 cited a number of scientific studies of schadenfreude, which it defined as "delighting in others' misfortune." Many such studies are based on social comparison theory, the idea that when people around us have bad luck, we look better to ourselves. Other researchers have found that people with low self-esteem are more likely to feel schadenfreude than are people who have high self-esteem.[21]

A 2006 experiment suggests that men, but not women, enjoy seeing "bad" people suffer. The study was designed to measure empathy, by watching which brain centers are stimulated when subjects inside an fMRI observe someone having a painful experience. Researchers expected that the brain's empathy center would show more stimulation when those seen as "good" got an electric shock than they would if the shock was given to someone the subject had reason to consider bad. This was indeed the case, but for male subjects the brain's pleasure centers also lit up when someone else got a shock that the male thought was well-deserved.[22]

Brain-scanning studies show that schadenfreude is correlated with envy. Strong feelings of envy activated physical pain nodes in the brain's dorsal anterior cingulate cortex; the brain's reward centers (e.g. the ventral striatum) were activated by news that the people envied had suffered misfortune. The magnitude of the brain's schadenfreude response could even be predicted from the strength of the previous envy response. [23][24]

[edit] Variants

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[edit] Expressions in other languages

  • Arabic, the word "shamateh" (شماتة) exactly corresponds to "deriving joy from the misfortune that befalls on others". In a poem attributed to ‘Alī ibn Abī Ṭālib, he warns that "And do not complain to the enemies constantly - For the enemies' "shamateh" is a disease - And do not ask forgiveness from someone who lacks generosity - For there is no water for the thirsty in a fire".
  • Chinese, the phrase xìngzāi lèhuò (simplified Chinese: 幸灾乐祸; traditional Chinese: 幸災樂禍) is an old idiom that directly translates to "enjoying (other's) calamity (and) laughing at (other's) misfortune".
  • Danish: Egen lykke er at foretrække men andres ulykke er dog ikke at foragte: "(One's) own happiness is to be preferred, but the misfortune of others should not be scorned."
  • Danish: Der er ingen fryd som skadefryd: "There is no glee like schadenfreude."
  • Dutch: Geen schoner vermaak dan leedvermaak proverb: "No pleasure more beautiful than schadenfreude." (Proverb, often used ironically).
  • German: Neid zu fühlen ist menschlich, Schadenfreude zu genießen teuflisch: "To feel envy is human, to savor schadenfreude is devilish." (Arthur Schopenhauer)
  • German: Schadenfreude ist die schönste Freude: "Schadenfreude is the best form of joy." Often used ironically to criticize somebody's display of schadenfreude. A modern witticism; the real German proverb from which this derives is "Vorfreude ist die schönste Freude." (Anticipation is the best joy.)
  • German: Lachen heißt: schadenfroh sein, aber mit gutem Gewissen: "Humor is just Schadenfreude with a clear conscience." (Nietzsche)
  • Greek: The word herekakia (χαιρεκακία) corresponds to wanting or enjoying the misforune of others.
  • Estonian: kahjurõõm on kõige suurem rõõm
  • Finnish: Vahingonilo on aidointa iloa, sillä siihen ei sisälly tippaakaan kateutta: ("Schadenfreude is the most genuine kind of joy, since it doesn't include even a drop of envy"). "Vahingonilo" has much the same meaning as "Schadenfreude" down to the meanings of the individual words that make up each compound word.
  • French: Le malheur des uns fait le bonheur des autres proverb: "One person's misfortune is another's happiness". However, the equivalence here is inexact, as the proverb really means that only that one person would benefit from another's misfortune, not actually find pleasure in misfortune for its own sake. A better expression would be "Se réjouir du malheur d'autrui" ("To find joy in another's misfortune" i.e. To gloat)
  • Hebrew: אין שמחה כשמחה לאיד‎: "There is no joy like schadenfreude"
  • Hungarian: legszebb öröm a káröröm: "The most beautiful joy is the malicious joy."
  • Japanese, the phrase 他人の不幸は蜜の味 (tanin no fukō wa mitsu no aji), translates literally as "others' misfortunes are the taste of honey."
  • Korean: 고소하다 gosohada, literally translated means "to smell or taste sesame oil", (a pleasant after taste) because in Korea the smell of sesame oil is regarded as very pleasant, this phrase also is used when one is pleased about a particular event. It is especially used when one is pleased about an event involving the misfortune of people they considered to be evened with or unworthy of a pleasure or their status.
  • Malay: padan muka means "fits your face" but the more appropriate English translation is: "You got what you deserved";
  • Norwegian: skadefryd er den eneste sanne gleden "schadenfreude is the only true joy"
  • Portuguese: in Brazil, schadenfreude is usually descripted by expressions, slangs or informal explanations, as there is no specific word in Brazilian vocabulary for this feeling. Pimenta nos olhos dos outros é refresco and rir da desgraça alheia are the most used among Brazilians, meaning "pepper in another's eyes is refreshing" and "laugh at someone else's misfortunes", respectively.
  • Slovak: škodoradosť je najväčšia radosť "schadenfreude is the greatest joy"
  • Spanish: malsana alegría There is not a one word equivalent. There would be something as 'alegrarse por la desgracia ajena', but 'malsana alegría' is more frequent, translated as "sickly joy".
  • Spanish: gozarla (Argentina) Literally "to enjoy someone". The meaning is made clear by the context.
  • Swedish: skadeglädje är den enda sanna glädjen "schadenfreude is the only true joy"
  • Thai: สมน้ำหน้า som nam na, can be interpreted as: "You got what you deserved"; "Serves you right"; or "I'm laughing at your bad luck".

[edit] Similar terms in other languages

  • Albanian: inat: (inat or inad, spite, ill will, resentment at others' fortune, pleasure from others' misfortune)
  • Arabic: شماتة ‎: shamaatah shamtan, taking pleasure in the misfortune of others)
  • Bulgarian: злорадство: (зло, evil or harm, радост, joy)
  • simplified Chinese: 幸灾乐祸; traditional Chinese: 幸災樂禍 (幸 enjoy[ing]; 災 [other's] calamity; 樂 be happy for/laugh at; 禍 [other's] misfortune/suffering)
  • Croatian: zluradost: (zlo, evil, radost, joy)
  • Czech: škodolibost: (škoda, damage, harm, or loss, libost, pleasure)
  • Danish: skadefryd: skadefryd (skade, damage, injury or harm, fryd, glee)
  • Dutch: leedvermaak: (leed, suffering or sorrow, and vermaak, entertainment)
  • Esperanto: malica ĝojo: (malica, wicked, and ĝojo, joy)
  • Estonian: kahjurõõm: (kahju, damage or harm and rõõm, joy)
  • Finnish: vahingonilo: (vahinko, accident or damage, ilo, joy)
  • Hebrew: שמחה לאיד‎:, joy, איד, misfortune, based on Proverbs 17:5) (simcha la'ed), also: " מתכבד בקלון חבירו " (see Mishneh Torah, the laws of Teshuvah chap. 4:4).
  • Hungarian: káröröm: (kár, loss or damage, öröm, joy)
  • Italian: danno piacere: (danno, damage, and piacere, enjoyment)
  • Lithuanian: piktdžiuga: (piktas angry, džiaugsmas joy)
  • Macedonian: злорадост: (зло, evil or harm, радост, joy)
  • Norwegian: skadefryd: skadefryd (skade, damage, injury or harm, fryd, glee)
  • Russian: злорадство: (зло, evil or harm, радость, joy)
  • Scottish Gaelic: aighear millteach: (aighear, delight or joy, millteach, malicious or destructive)
  • Serbian: злурадост/zluradost: (zlo, evil, radost, joy)
  • Slovak: škodoradosť:(škoda, damage, harm, or loss, radosť, joy)
  • Slovene: škodoželjnost : (škoda, damage, harm, or loss, želeti, to wish)
  • Swedish: skadeglädje: (skada, damage, glädje, joy or happiness)
  • Ukrainian: зловтіха: (зло, evil or harm, втіха, joy or happiness)

[edit] In popular culture

The word Schadenfreude became increasingly known in popular culture from the end of the 20th century. In 1991, during The Simpsons episode "When Flanders Failed", Lisa asks Homer if he's ever heard of schadenfreude after he expresses delight that Ned Flanders' business is failing. Defining it for him, she says, "It's a German term for "shameful joy", taking pleasure in the suffering of others."[25] By 2000, the word was used without explanation during a Malcolm in the Middle (TV series) episode "High School Play": after Malcolm (Frankie Muniz) abandons the Krelboynes to play the role of Puck in A Midsummer Night's Dream and has forgotten all of his lines, Krelboyne Lloyd (Evan Matthew Cohen) comments, "Normally, I would enjoy the schadenfreude, but this is just sad."

In an episode of Two and a Half Men, the character Rose explains the German origin and meaning of schadenfreude to Charlie Harper. Later she confesses to feeling glaukenstucken, which she describes as guilt over having felt schadenfreude; when Charlie expresses surprise that the Germans have a word for that as well, she admits that they don't, but she's hoping that glaukenstucken catches on.

In a 2003 episode of The West Wing, White House Press Secretary C. J. Cregg (Allison Janney) uses the term "schadenfreude" and then has to explain it. Cregg notes that after an important member of the White House staff, a friend of hers, made a big political mistake, Washington insiders will be enjoying schadenfreude. When an assistant asks the definition of the word, Cregg responds, "Schadenfreude: taking joy in the suffering of others. You know, the whole rationale behind the House of Representatives"[26]

In the 2004 Tony Award-winning musical Avenue Q the song "Schadenfreude" parodies the language instruction songs of Sesame Street. [3] The song sung by characters Gary Coleman and Nicky, describes schadenfreude as "German for 'happiness at the misfortune of others'." In the song, schadenfreude is also described as "making me feel glad that I'm not you" and "people taking pleasure in your pain". The characters use examples like "D'ja ever clap when a waitress falls and drops a tray of glasses?" and "don'tcha feel all warm and cozy, watching people out in the rain" as being schadenfreude.[27]

A 2005 episode of the television drama Boston Legal carries the term as its title. In the episode attorney Alan Shore describes this condition to a jury in order to describe the only way they could possibly attain a guilty verdict against his client. In the 2006 Hellblazer graphic novel The Red Right Hand, it is revealed that schadenfreude has saved the world. [28]

Neologisms were coined from the word as early as 1993, when Lincoln Caplan, in his book "Skadden: Power, Money, and the Rise of a Legal Empire," [29]used the portmanteau "Skaddenfreude" to describe the delight that competitors of Skadden Arps took in its troubles of the early 1990s. Another portmanteau is "Spitzenfreude," coined by The Economist to refer to the fall of Eliot Spitzer.[30]

The transposed variant "Freudenschade" seems to have been multiply invented to mean sorrow at another person's success. [31][32]

The first two Edgar and Ellen books mention "schadenfreude" as being the word carved into the stone arch over the front door of these nefarious twins' dilapidated home. The Teacher's Guide to the first novel, Rare Beasts, lists "schadenfreude" as one of the vocabulary words along with the word's pronunciation.[33]

In 2008, Lyons Press published a humorous book on the phenomenon: "Shadenfreude, Baby" by author Laura Lee.[34] Science Fiction author John Scalzi developed what he calls the Schadenfreude Pie, to be enjoyed while "reveling in the horrible misfortunes of others." The recipe can be found on his blog, Whatever. [35]

The 2007 Copyrighted "Dilbert Positive Attitude" Dogbert is seen on a fencepost holding a SCHADENFREUDE Party. [36]

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ Merriam-Webster’s Online Dictionary.
  2. ^ Cited in Portmann, John (2000). When bad things happen to other people. New York: Routledge. ISBN 0-415-92335-2. , p. 186.
  3. ^ Shipley, Joseph T. (1955). Dictionary of Early English. Philosophical Library. ISBN-13: 978-0806529264. 
  4. ^ Novobatzky, Peter; Shea , Ammon (1955). Depraved and Insulting English. Harvest Books. ISBN-13: 978-0156011495. 
  5. ^ Bailey, Nathan (1737). Universal Etymological English Dictionary. London. 
  6. ^ Bailey, Nathan (1751). Dictionarium Britannicum. London. 
  7. ^ Byrne, Josefa H. (1984). Mrs. Byrne's Dictionary of Unusual, Obscure, and Preposterous Words. Pocket. ISBN 0671497820. 
  8. ^ Roman holiday - Definition from the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary
  9. ^ definition of morose delectation, Oxford English Dictionary
  10. ^ Prima Secundae Partis, Q. 74, The Summa Theologica of St. Thomas Aquinas, Second and Revised Edition, 1920; Literally translated by Fathers of the English Dominican Province, Online Edition Copyright © 2006 by Kevin Knight.
  11. ^ Chapter 6 Proposing the Story of the World, Richard John Neuhaus, Catholic Matters: Confusion, Controversy, and the Splendor of Truth, Basic Books, 2006.
  12. ^ Heterodox Religion and Post-Atheism: Bataille / Klossowski/ Foucault, Jones Irwin, ISSN 1393-614X Minerva - An Internet Journal of Philosophy Vol. 10 2006.
  13. ^ Klossowski, Pierre. 1991. Sade, My Neighbour, translated by Alphonso Lingis. Illinois. Northwestern University Press.
  14. ^ Slate (October 15, 2008) "Epic Win: Goodbye schadenfreude, hello fail"
  15. ^ New York Times (August 3, 2008) "Malwebolence - The World of Web Trolling"
  16. ^ The Upside of Shadenfreude, Joshua Zader, Mudita Journal, December 6, 2005.
  17. ^ Are you Schadenfreude or Mudita?, Sirtumble, One of Six Billion..., February 6, 2005.
  18. ^ Pedrick, Victoria; Oberhelman, Steven M. (2006). The Soul of Tragedy: Essays on Athenian Drama. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press. ISBN-13: 978-0226653068. 
  19. ^ Nicomachean Ethics, 2.7.1108b1-10
  20. ^ Robert Burton (1621). The Anatomy of Melancholy. pp. t. 1, sect. 1, memb. 2, subsect. 8. 
  21. ^ St. John, Warren. "Sorrow So Sweet: A Guilty Pleasure in Another's Woe". New York Times, Aug. 24, 2002.
  22. ^ Singer T, Seymour B, O'Doherty JP, Stephan KE, Dolan RJ, Frith CD (January 2006). "Empathic neural responses are modulated by the perceived fairness of others". Nature 439 (7075): 466–9. doi:10.1038/nature04271. PMID 16421576.  Lay-summary
  23. ^ Science (February 13, 2009) "When Your Gain Is My Pain and Your Pain Is My Gain: Neural Correlates of Envy and Schadenfreude" by Hidehiko Takahashi et al.
  24. ^ New York Times (February 17, 2009) "In Pain and Joy of Envy, the Brain May Play a Role" by Natalie Angier
  25. ^ Lisa Simpson (Character) - Quotes
  26. ^ http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/The_West_Wing
  27. ^ http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Avenue_Q#.22Schadenfreude.22
  28. ^ In order to defeat the mass suicidal effects of the empathy engine a great saturation of positive emotion is required - this is found from the group of Scottish soldiers who hear over their radio that the England soccer team has lost a world cup quarter final match to Portugal. John Constantine's reaction to the elation of the soldiers is "Schadenfreude. Delighting in the misery of others. That's the purest emotion I've ever felt."
  29. ^ http://www.amazon.com/Skadden-Power-Money-Legal-Empire/dp/0374524246
  30. ^ http://www.economist.com/world/unitedstates/displaystory.cfm?story_id=10852872
  31. ^ Yahoo Groups "worthless word for the day is ... freudenschade"
  32. ^ Daily Stanford (2006) "Freudenschade"
  33. ^ Edgar & Ellen Teacher's Guide for Rare Beasts http://www.edgarandellen.com/teachers-guides/RareBeastsTeachersGuide.pdf
  34. ^ Lee, Laura. Schadenfreude, Baby! Lyons Press, New York: 2008
  35. ^ http://scalzi.com/whatever/?p=1838
  36. ^ DILBERT Positive Attitude by Scott Adams from Andrews McMeel Publishing ISBN-13:978-0-7407-6379-3 page 30
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See also: Meta-emotion
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