Why do we like tragedy

Forgot password? Don't have an account? All Rights Reserved. OSO version 0. University Press Scholarship Online. Sign in. Not registered? Sign up. Publications Pages Publications Pages. Longstanding story structures and character constructions use both comedy and tragedy to produce pleasure, learning, and bonding in audiences. What seems to be merely the device of the storyteller has, in the end, a psychological and physical basis and outcome. Though the science of it may not be understood by the storyteller or their audience, the effects are real.

Do all stories have the same level of power? What techniques can a writer employ to make a story the most powerful it can be? Post by Sara Barkat. Buy How to Write a Poem Now! I like my tea black with a special love for Indian chai and my novels long give me sci-fi, fantasy, or 19th century to make me especially happy! Speaking of the universe, I have a passion for learning about anything from black holes to the mysteries of time. Brilliant research and writing, Sara.

I applaud the time it must have taken to put this together, not to mention the reading. Your references were fascinating. The results appear online in the journal Communication Research and will appear in an upcoming print edition. The study involved college students who viewed an abridged version of the movie "Atonement," which involves two lovers who are separated and die as war casualties.

Before and after viewing the movie, the respondents were asked several questions which measured how happy they were with their life. They were also asked before, after and three times during the movie to rate how much they were feeling various emotions, including sadness. After the movie, participants rated how much they enjoyed the movie and wrote about how the movie had led them to reflect on themselves, their goals, their relationships and life in general.

What people wrote about as a result of seeing the movie was a key in understanding why people enjoy viewing fictional tragedies, Knobloch-Westerwick said. People who experienced a greater increase in sadness while watching the movie were more likely to write about real people with whom they had close relationships, she said. This in turn, increased participants' life happiness after viewing, which was then related to more enjoyment of the movie.

The researchers also tested the theory that people may feel more happiness after viewing a tragedy movie because they compare themselves to the characters portrayed and feel good that their own lives are not as bad. But that wasn't the case. People whose thoughts after the movie were about themselves -- rather than about their close relationships -- did not experience an increase in life happiness.

Some studies have found that one reason we enjoy sad endings is because, by contrast, they make our lives look better. This study, by Ohio State University, had participants reflect on their feelings after seeing tragic events in a story. They found that being exposed to tragedy made people think about how grateful they felt for not having to endure what the characters did. But is there something else we gain from sad endings that lead to our enjoyment?

What about our relationship with happy endings? We love seeing characters kiss at the end of a story and settle in somewhere where they can be happy. We love seeing the innocent persevere, grow strong, and find peace. However, sometimes we feel a little lost with so many happy endings around us.

As we grow older we become more and more aware of how rare and difficult it is to reach our own happy conclusions. When we watch yet another happy ending we feel a little cheated. Its so easy for these characters to tie up loose ends and they seem so mindfully grateful of their blissful surroundings which is very, very difficult for the majority of us who are easily distracted by the small imperfections.

Although this is the ideal, it is hardly the reality. In our own lives we always seem to be struggling with one large problem after another. Those touched by tragedy or turmoil in real life might grow tired of happy endings, because they feel disingenuous. Or worse, they might make us feel as though our tragedy or woes are abnormal.

So sometimes we crave an honest depiction of sadness, disappointment, regret, and, most importantly, resilience.