Philosopher Martha Nussbaum on Anger, Forgiveness, the Emotional Machinery of Trust, and the Only Fruitful Response to Betrayal in Intimate Relationships

In fact, not acting on anger is often far more destructive and immoral than using it—in a calm and constructive way, of course.

if anger is what you are, experience it. After all, it is the reality of the moment. So if we pretend anger is not there and cover it with a directive like “Do not be angry,” then right away there’s no chance to really know anger for what it is. The other side of anger, if we experience its emptiness and go through it, is always compassion. If we r

As free speech activist and writer Soraya Chemaly has said, “Anger … is actually a signal emotion: It warns us of indignity, threat, insult, and harm.” When an interaction, person, or experience makes us angry, our bodies and minds are effectively having an emotional “immune” response.

For example, I was told that in Buddhist psychology, there is an important difference between anger and indignation: anger arises out of powerlessness, while indignation arises out of power.

Freedom from Anger What is anger? Anger is a way to signal as strongly as you can to the other party you’re capable of violence. Anger is a precursor to violence. Observe when you’re angry—anger is a loss of control over the situation. Anger is a contract you make with yourself to be in physical and mental and emotional turmoil until reality change

our belief that anger is always tied to an objective cause. Something out there makes us mad, and if we can but eliminate whatever that something is, then we shall be at peace again.