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Check your schadenfreude

6 minutes

Laughing at others’ misfortune is fine for ‘fail’ videos. It’s poison for politics

The German word schadenfreude describes taking pleasure in another’s misfortune – a combination of joy and amusement that’s omnipresent in everything from William Shakespeare’s comedies to America’s Funniest Home Videos. While relatively harmless in the context of, say, watching YouTube footage of a brutal bellyflop, in politics, it hijacks media coverage and pollutes clear thinking about decisions that have far-reaching consequences. In this incisive video essay, Evan Puschak (also known as The Nerdwriter) discusses the troubling rise of schadenfreude in political discourse in the age of Donald Trump .

Video by The Nerdwriter

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Support Aeon

Become a Friend for $5 a month or Make a one-off donation

Become a Friend of Aeon or Make a donation

Aeon is a registered charity committed to the spread of knowledge. Our mission is to create a sanctuary online for serious thinking.
But we can’t do it without you.

Aeon is a registered charity committed to the spread of knowledge and a cosmopolitan worldview.
But we can’t do it without you.
Essay/
Mental Health
Temperamentally blessed

Just one in five people will be lucky enough to avoid mental health problems throughout their life. How do they do it?

Elizabeth Svoboda

Essay/
Mental Health
The usefulness of dread

My anxiety has been lifelong but I would not wish it away. It has made me the philosopher – and person – that I am today

Samir Chopra