The Joy Of Watching Others Suffer: Schadenfreude And The Hunger Games
366 Words2 Pages
Schadenfreude, the feeling of pleasure from another’s pain, is a human trait that impacts all societies, including the Roman Colosseum, modern society, and Panem. Andrew Shaffer’s essay “The Joy of Watching Others Suffer: Schadenfreude and the Hunger Games”, explores how the thirst for others suffering affects the lengths we'll go to for entertainment. Schadenfreude is a natural human trait that creates a thirst for shocking and dangerous entertainment. Although schadenfreude affects some more than others, it is present in every person through the hormone, oxytocin. More oxytocin enhances schadenfreude.
The brutal gladiator attacks of The Roman Colosseum are examples of schadenfreude used in entertainment. In the modern world, there is obsessions