Anger

Abstract

Almost everyone at some time experiences anger in some form or another. Most of us have played the role of the angry actor, been the target of someone else’s anger, or witnessed expressions of anger between other individuals in real life, on stage, or in the media. Anger provides drama; rage enlarges and expands it. Thus, it is hardly surprising that many television programs, cinema, and live theater utilize variants of anger as script elements. “Reality” television programs often instigate anger among “actors,” letting their viewers witness its psychosocial effects. Anger can be personally and socially destructive, but it can also inspire, mobilize, and propel individuals to alter the undesirable circumstances of their lives. In addition, anger provides us with explanations for other people’s behavior—especially intensely shocking acts; for example, on May 30,2005, a 9-year-old girl in East New York, Brooklyn, stabbed an 11-year-old girl in the chest with a steak knife. The headline for the story in the New York Times read “Neighbors Saw Anger in Girl, 9, Accused in Killing.”.