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Most people think bad feelings--feelings like anger, envy, spite, and contempt--are obstacles to a good life. You're supposed to do your best not to feel them or to get over them as quickly as you can, otherwise they'll take over and turn you into a monster. But this is a big mistake. We don't have to battle our negative emotions or "channel" them into something productive. We feel negative emotions because our lives matter to us. They are part of what makes life meaningful. This book shows how philosophy can help us learn to live life well with bad feelings.
List of contents
- Part I: The Garden
- Introduction: Weeds, Worms and Communing with the Dead
- Chapter One: Emotional Saints
- Chapter Two: Taming the Beasts
- Chapter Three: Make Room for the Devil
- Part II: The Worms
- Chapter Four: Anger
- Chapter Five: Envy and Jealousy
- Chapter Six: Spite and Schadenfreude
- Chapter Seven: Contempt
- Conclusion: An Elegy for Zilu
- Acknowledgments
- Notes
About the author
Krista K. Thomason is an Associate Professor of Philosophy at Swarthmore College. In 2021-2022, she was the Philip L. Quinn Fellow at the National Humanities Center. Her areas of expertise include philosophy of emotion, moral philosophy, history of philosophy, and political philosophy. Some of her publications appear in Philosophy and Phenomenological Research, European Journal of Philosophy, Kantian Review, and The Monist. She is the author of the book Naked: The Dark Side of Shame and Moral Life, which was published with Oxford University Press in 2018. She has been interviewed by the Wall Street Journal, NBC News, and CNN.
Summary
Most people think bad feelings--feelings like anger, envy, spite, and contempt--are obstacles to a good life. You're supposed to do your best not to feel them or to get over them as quickly as you can, otherwise they'll take over and turn you into a monster. But this is a big mistake. We don't have to battle our negative emotions or
Additional text
Thomason speaks directly to the reader in a conversational manner that is accessible, compelling, and sparkles with grace and wit. Readers will never feel the same again about feeling bad. This is an amazing book... Essential. All readers.
