Why we love being scared and sad | The Paradox of Tragedy

The Paradox of Tragedy is a philosophical problem that asks why we seem to enjoy media that makes us miserable, specifically horror and drama. This video introduces the paradox and several standard replies to it, as well as their limitations, and then offers a potential solution rooted in neuroscience and brain chemistry. Timestamps: 00:00 – Introduction 00:45 – Defining the Paradox of Tragedy 03:29 – Compensatory View 05:40 – Distance View 07:51 – Transformation View 08:31 – Revisionary View 09:42 – Neuroscience as a Solution? 13:32 – Wrap-up References: Burke, Edmund, 1757, A Philosophical Inquiry into the Origin of Our Ideas of the Sublime and Beautiful, London: R. and J. Dodsley. Gilmore, Jonathan, "Paradox of Tragedy", The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Spring 2025 Edition), Edward N. Zalta & Uri Nodelman (eds.), URL = https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/s... Hume, David, 1757 [1987], “Of Tragedy”, in his Four Dissertations, London: A. Millar. Collected as Essay XXII in his Essays, Moral, Political, and Literary, Eugene F. Miller (ed.), Revised edition, Indianapolis, IN: LibertyClassics, 1987, 216–225. Hume 1757 available online. Disclaimer: All works or references that may be used on this channel are for fair use commentary, criticism, and educational purposes. See Hughes v. Benjamin, 437 F. Supp. 3d 382 (S.D.N.Y. 2020); Hosseinzadeh v. Klein, 276 F.Supp.3d 34 (S.D.N.Y. 2017); Equals Three, LLC v. Jukin Media, Inc., 139 F. Supp. 3d 1094 (C.D. Cal. 2015). #philosophy #horror #tragedy #paradox #drama #psychology