Schadenfreude

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Schadenfreude

Author : Tiffany Watt Smith
Publisher : Little, Brown Spark
ISBN 13 : 0316470295
Total Pages : 143 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (164 download)

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Book Synopsis Schadenfreude by : Tiffany Watt Smith

Download or read book Schadenfreude written by Tiffany Watt Smith and published by Little, Brown Spark. This book was released on 2018-11-20 with total page 143 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An entertaining and insightful exploration of schadenfreude: the deliciously dark and complex joy we've all felt, from time to time, at news of others' misfortunes. You might feel schadenfreude when... the boss calls himself "Head of Pubic Services" on an important letter a cool guy swings back on his chair, and it tips over. a Celebrity Vegan is caught in the cheese aisle. an aggressive driver cuts you off -- and then gets pulled over. your co-worker heats up fish in the microwave, then gets food poisoning. an urban unicyclist almost collides with a parked car. someone cuts the line for the ATM -- and then it swallows their card. your effortlessly attractive friend gets dumped. We all know the pleasure felt at someone else's misfortune. The Germans named this furtive delight in another's failure schadenfreude (from schaden damage, and freude, joy), and it has perplexed philosophers and psychologists for centuries. Why can it be so satisfying to witness another's distress? And what, if anything, should we do about it? Schadenfreude illuminates this hidden emotion, inviting readers to reflect on its pleasures, and how we use other people's miseries to feel better about ourselves. Written in an exploratory, evocative form, it weaves examples from literature, philosophy, film, and music together with personal observation and historical and cultural analysis. And in today's world of polarized politics, twitter trolls and "sidebars of shame," it couldn't be timelier. Engaging, insightful, and entertaining, Schadenfreude makes the case for thinking afresh about the role this much-maligned emotion plays in our lives -- perhaps even embracing it.

Schadenfreude

Author : Wilco W. van Dijk
Publisher : Cambridge University Press
ISBN 13 : 1139992015
Total Pages : 333 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (399 download)

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Book Synopsis Schadenfreude by : Wilco W. van Dijk

Download or read book Schadenfreude written by Wilco W. van Dijk and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2014-07-24 with total page 333 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: When someone suffers a mishap, a setback or a downfall, we sometimes find ourselves experiencing schadenfreude - an emotion defined as deriving pleasure from another's misfortune. Schadenfreude is a common experience and an emotion which is seemingly inherent to social being. This book offers a comprehensive summary of current theoretical and empirical work on schadenfreude from psychological, philosophical and other scientific perspectives. The chapters explore justice as an underlying motive for schadenfreude, and the role played by social comparison processes and envy in evoking pleasure at the misfortunes of others in interpersonal relations. Schadenfreude is also described as a common phenomenon in intergroup relations. This is a compelling volume on a fascinating subject matter that aims to increase our understanding of the nature of this emotion and the role it plays in social relations.

Schadenfreude, A Love Story

Author : Rebecca Schuman
Publisher : Macmillan + ORM
ISBN 13 : 1250077664
Total Pages : 244 pages
Book Rating : 4.2/5 (5 download)

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Book Synopsis Schadenfreude, A Love Story by : Rebecca Schuman

Download or read book Schadenfreude, A Love Story written by Rebecca Schuman and published by Macmillan + ORM. This book was released on 2017-02-07 with total page 244 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “A wild and wonderful ride” from a comic memoirist “who writes brilliantly about Germany and Germans . . . and being young and insane. . . . just read it, ok?” (Dave Barry, Pulitzer Prize–winning, New York Times–bestselling author of Best. State. Ever). You know that feeling you get watching the elevator doors slam shut just before your toxic coworker can step in? There’s a word for this mix of malice and joy, and the Germans invented it. It’s Schadenfreude, deriving pleasure from others’ misfortune. Misfortune happens to be a specialty of Rebecca Schuman—and this is great news for the Germans. For Rebecca adores the Vaterland with a single-minded passion. Let’s just say the affection isn’t mutual. Schadenfreude is the story of a teenage Jewish intellectual who falls in love—with a boy (who breaks her heart), a language (that’s nearly impossible to master), a culture (that’s nihilistic, but punctual), and a landscape (that’s breathtaking when there’s not a wall in the way). Rebecca is a misunderstood 90’s teenager with a passion for Pearl Jam and Ethan Hawke circa Reality Bites, until two men walk into her high school Civics class: Dylan Gellner, with deep brown eyes and an even deeper soul, and Franz Kafka, hitching a ride in Dylan’s backpack. These two men are the axe to the frozen sea that is Rebecca’s spirit, and what flows forth is a passion for all things German. At once a snapshot of a young woman finding herself, and a country starting to stitch itself back together after nearly a century of war, Schadenfreude, A Love Story is a hilarious and heartfelt memoir proving that sometimes the truest loves play hard to get. “Spit-out-your-schnitzel funny.” —Pamela Druckerman, New York Times–bestselling author of Bringing Up Bébé

The Joy of Pain

Author : Richard H. Smith
Publisher : Oxford University Press
ISBN 13 : 0199734542
Total Pages : 257 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (997 download)

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Book Synopsis The Joy of Pain by : Richard H. Smith

Download or read book The Joy of Pain written by Richard H. Smith and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2013-08-15 with total page 257 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Argues that schadenfreude is a normal human emotion, looking at its roots in feelings of justice, positive sense of self, and concern with inferiority.

Schadenfreude

Author : Blue Murder Projekt Publishing
Publisher :
ISBN 13 : 9780692559604
Total Pages : 292 pages
Book Rating : 4.5/5 (596 download)

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Book Synopsis Schadenfreude by : Blue Murder Projekt Publishing

Download or read book Schadenfreude written by Blue Murder Projekt Publishing and published by . This book was released on 2015-12-03 with total page 292 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Erich Kass has a safe gray life in Berlin until he is arrested by the Gestapo for kissing another boy. The Hell he finds in Auschwitz as the property of Dr. Ahren Kaltherzig will destroy everything he thinks he knows about life and safety.

Schottenfreude

Author : Ben Schott
Publisher : Penguin
ISBN 13 : 039916670X
Total Pages : 98 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (991 download)

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Book Synopsis Schottenfreude by : Ben Schott

Download or read book Schottenfreude written by Ben Schott and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2013-10-31 with total page 98 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Schottenfreude is a unique, must-have dictionary, complete with newly coined words that explore the idiosyncrasies of life as only the German language can. Ever thought, There should be a German word for that? Well, thanks to the brilliantly original mind behind Schott’s Original Miscellany, now there is. In what other language but German could you construct le mot juste for a secret love of bad foods, the inability to remember jokes, Sunday-afternoon depression, the urge to yawn, the glee of gossip, reassuring your hairdresser, delight at the changing of the seasons, the urge to hoard, or the ineffable pleasure of a cold pillow? A beguiling, ideal gift book for the Gelehrte or anyone on your list—just beware of rapidly expanding (and potentially incomprehensible) vocabularies.

Schadenfreude

Author : Tim Lihoreau
Publisher : Elliott & Thompson
ISBN 13 : 9781907642371
Total Pages : 0 pages
Book Rating : 4.6/5 (423 download)

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Book Synopsis Schadenfreude by : Tim Lihoreau

Download or read book Schadenfreude written by Tim Lihoreau and published by Elliott & Thompson. This book was released on 2011 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "We might not like to admit to it, but everyone - even the gentlest of souls - derives a secret guilty satisfaction from the misfortune of others. Tim Lihoreau has made it his business to uncover the myriad ways in which schadenfreude rears its wicked head, including: Turparphilia: To delight in the less than aesthetically beautiful nature of a friend's offspring. Nimbuphilia: To delight in driving wildly through a kerb-side puddle which you know to be too close to a pedestrian. Famaphilia: To delight in witnessing a celebrity in an everyday pickle. Schadenfreude: The Little Book of Black Delights uncovers the shady details of our darkest pleasures. Naming, defining and explaining each one in turn with fascinating insights and erudite wit, it drives at the heart of what it is we find so irresistibly delightful when faced with the other people's discomfort. Whether you actively pursue them, only think of them or even try and deny them, your blackest delights are in here somewhere... "--Publisher description.

Empathy Rules

Author : Catherine Chambliss
Publisher : Nova Science Publishers
ISBN 13 : 9781536100006
Total Pages : 0 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 ( download)

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Book Synopsis Empathy Rules by : Catherine Chambliss

Download or read book Empathy Rules written by Catherine Chambliss and published by Nova Science Publishers. This book was released on 2016 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book presents compelling empirical evidence, collected in the US and Europe, that how one reacts to others ups and downs may profoundly affect their own mental health. Depression continues to devastate a growing number of lives globally. More than 350 million people worldwide have depression (Smith, 2014). While medications and psychotherapy help many, more solutions are urgently needed. Since social factors are known to be influential, innovative exploration of the interpersonal dimensions of depression is vital. This book explains how expressing greater empathy can help. This book is directed at a broad audience, including everyone seeking better relationships, clients wanting to amplify their recovery experience, as well as clinicians and students interested in helping others who struggle with depression. Schadenfreude (deriving pleasure from others misfortune) helps explain our inordinate interest in others' pain and bad luck. It is why in the news "if it bleeds, it leads," why so much fiction focuses on tragedy, why attention rivets on the latest celebrity arrest or rehab, and why people poor through obituaries. Granted, schadenfreude is not the whole story. Seeking information about potential threats has survival significance. Part of our brains evolved to focus laser-like on even low risk dangers. And peoples huge appetite for bad news about others' lives has its social advantages. When adroitly conveyed, this interest communicates concern and caring. It comforts and connects people. But if the joy that other peoples problems occasionally gives you becomes unveiled, watch out. Nothing hurts more when someones down than seeing their own despair delight the listener or obviously make the listener feel lucky (Im positively thrilled not to be in that fix; better you than me!). The trick, in friendship and other helping relationships, is to dampen expressions of schadenfreude and instead emphasise empathy. But not everyone is skilled at this, which frequently seems to result in interpersonal difficulties and enhanced risk of depression. This book was designed to highlight the perils of excessive schadenfreude when others stumble, as well as the promise of building better relationships through greater expression of freudenfreude (sharing others joy) when others succeed. Understanding these issues may help the reader improve relationships and reduce depressive symptoms, or possibly enable the reader to assist others battle depression more successfully. Long-term recovery depends heavily upon establishing and maintaining an effective support system. Learning how to balance ones selfish and cooperative impulses more thoughtfully can be extremely useful in building a more robust social network. As humanity contends with modern threats, including the hazards of planetary warming, successful solutions require emphasising empathy and our interconnectedness while curbing our short-term, selfish inclinations. Although responding more optimally to depression is the focus of this book, it invites the application of these ideas to even broader concerns.

When Bad Things Happen to Other People

Author : John Portmann
Publisher : Routledge
ISBN 13 : 1134001711
Total Pages : 377 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (34 download)

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Book Synopsis When Bad Things Happen to Other People by : John Portmann

Download or read book When Bad Things Happen to Other People written by John Portmann and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2002-06-01 with total page 377 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Although many of us deny it, it is not uncommon to feel pleasure over the suffering of others, particularly when we feel that suffering has been deserved. The German word for this concept-Schadenfreude-has become universal in its expression of this feeling. Drawing on the teachings of history's most prominent philosophers, John Portmann explores the concept of Schadenfreude in this rigorous, comprehensive, and absorbing study.

The Book of Human Emotions

Author : Tiffany Watt Smith
Publisher : Little, Brown Spark
ISBN 13 : 031626539X
Total Pages : 403 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (162 download)

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Book Synopsis The Book of Human Emotions by : Tiffany Watt Smith

Download or read book The Book of Human Emotions written by Tiffany Watt Smith and published by Little, Brown Spark. This book was released on 2016-06-07 with total page 403 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A thoughtful, gleeful encyclopedia of emotions, both broad and outrageously specific, from throughout history and around the world. How do you feel today? Is your heart fluttering in anticipation? Your stomach tight with nerves? Are you falling in love? Feeling a bit miffed? Do you have the heebie-jeebies? Are you antsy with iktsuarpok or filled with nakhes? Recent research suggests there are only six basic emotions. But if that makes you feel uneasy, suspicious, and maybe even a little bereft, The Book of Human Emotions is for you. In this unique book, you'll get to travel across the world and through time, learning how different cultures have articulated the human experience and picking up some fascinating new knowledge about yourself along the way. From the familiar (anger) to the foreign (zal), each entertaining and informative alphabetical entry reveals the surprising connections and fascinating facts behind our emotional lives. Whether you're in search of the perfect word to sum up that cozy feeling you get from being inside on a cold winter's night, surrounded by friends and good food (what the Dutch call gezelligheid), or wondering how nostalgia evolved from a fatal illness to enjoyable self-indulgence, Tiffany Watt Smith draws on history, anthropology, science, art, literature, music, and popular culture to find the answers. In reading The Book of Human Emotions, you'll discover feelings you never knew you had (like basorexia, the sudden urge to kiss someone) and gain unexpected insights into why you feel the way you do. Besides, aren't you curious what nginyiwarrarringu means?

Racial Resentment in the Political Mind

Author : Darren W. Davis
Publisher : University of Chicago Press
ISBN 13 : 022681484X
Total Pages : 364 pages
Book Rating : 4.2/5 (268 download)

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Book Synopsis Racial Resentment in the Political Mind by : Darren W. Davis

Download or read book Racial Resentment in the Political Mind written by Darren W. Davis and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2021-12-27 with total page 364 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "The recent United States presidential election as well as the responses to the protests about the death of Blacks at the hands of the police has brought forward the question of racism among white voters. In Racial Resentment in the Political Mind, Darren Davis and David Wilson explore the idea that racial resentment, rather than simply racial prejudice, is the basis for growing resistance among whites to efforts to improve the circumstances faced by minorities in the United States. The authors start with the idea that there is growing sentiment among whites that they are "losing-out" and "being cut in line" by Blacks and other minorities, as reflected in an emphasis on diversity and inclusion, multiculturalism, trigger warnings, and political correctness, an increase in African Americans occupying powerful and prestigious positions, and the election of Barack Obama as the first Black president. The culprits, as they see it, are undeserving Blacks, as well as other minorities, who are perceived to benefit unfairly from, and take advantage of, resources that come at whites' expense. This rewarding of unearned resources challenges the status quo and the "rules of the game," especially as they relate to justice and deservingness. These reactions may not stem from racial prejudice or hatred toward Blacks; instead, they may result from threats to whites' sense of justice, entitlement, and status. This sentiment is occurring among everyday citizens who do not subscribe to hate-filled racial or nationalistic ideologies but rather seek to treat everyone respectfully and equally, even those who are different, and understand that rejecting others because of racial prejudice is offensive"--

Stigma and Culture

Author : J. Lorand Matory
Publisher : University of Chicago Press
ISBN 13 : 022629787X
Total Pages : 542 pages
Book Rating : 4.2/5 (262 download)

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Book Synopsis Stigma and Culture by : J. Lorand Matory

Download or read book Stigma and Culture written by J. Lorand Matory and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2015-12-02 with total page 542 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In Stigma and Culture, J. Lorand Matory provocatively shows how ethnic identification in the United States—and around the globe—is a competitive and hierarchical process in which populations, especially of historically stigmatized races, seek status and income by dishonoring other stigmatized populations. And there is no better place to see this than among the African American elite in academia, where he explores the emergent ethnic identities of African and Caribbean immigrants and transmigrants, Gullah/Geechees, Louisiana Creoles, and even Native Americans of partly African ancestry. Matory describes the competitive process that hierarchically structures their self-definition as ethnic groups and the similar process by which middle-class African Americans seek distinction from their impoverished compatriots. Drawing on research at universities such as Howard, Harvard, and Duke and among their alumni networks, he details how university life—while facilitating individual upward mobility, touting human equality, and regaling cultural diversity—also perpetuates the cultural standards that historically justified the dominance of some groups over others. Combining his ethnographic findings with classic theoretical insights from Frantz Fanon, Fredrik Barth, Erving Goffman, Pierre Bourdieu and others—alongside stories from his own life in academia—Matory sketches the university as an institution that, particularly through the anthropological vocabulary of culture, encourages the stigmatized to stratify their own.

The Cambridge Handbook of Workplace Affect

Author : Liu-Qin Yang
Publisher : Cambridge University Press
ISBN 13 : 110849403X
Total Pages : 573 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (84 download)

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Book Synopsis The Cambridge Handbook of Workplace Affect by : Liu-Qin Yang

Download or read book The Cambridge Handbook of Workplace Affect written by Liu-Qin Yang and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2020-07-16 with total page 573 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Are you struggling to improve a hostile or uncomfortable environment at work, or interested in how such tension can arise? Experts in organizational psychology, management science, social psychology, and communication science show you how to implement interventions and programs to manage workplace emotion. The connection between workplace affect and relevant challenges in our society, such as diversity and technological changes, is undeniable; thus learning to harness that knowledge can revolutionize your performance in tackling workday issues. Applying major theoretical perspectives and research methodologies, this book outlines the concepts of display rules, emotional labor, work motivation, well-being, and discrete emotions. Understanding these ideas will show you how affect can promote team effectiveness, leadership, and conflict resolution. If you require a foundation for understanding workplace affect or a springboard into deeper, more interdisciplinary research, this book presents an integrative approach that is indispensable.

The Professor Is In

Author : Karen Kelsky
Publisher : Crown
ISBN 13 : 0553419420
Total Pages : 450 pages
Book Rating : 4.5/5 (534 download)

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Book Synopsis The Professor Is In by : Karen Kelsky

Download or read book The Professor Is In written by Karen Kelsky and published by Crown. This book was released on 2015-08-04 with total page 450 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The definitive career guide for grad students, adjuncts, post-docs and anyone else eager to get tenure or turn their Ph.D. into their ideal job Each year tens of thousands of students will, after years of hard work and enormous amounts of money, earn their Ph.D. And each year only a small percentage of them will land a job that justifies and rewards their investment. For every comfortably tenured professor or well-paid former academic, there are countless underpaid and overworked adjuncts, and many more who simply give up in frustration. Those who do make it share an important asset that separates them from the pack: they have a plan. They understand exactly what they need to do to set themselves up for success. They know what really moves the needle in academic job searches, how to avoid the all-too-common mistakes that sink so many of their peers, and how to decide when to point their Ph.D. toward other, non-academic options. Karen Kelsky has made it her mission to help readers join the select few who get the most out of their Ph.D. As a former tenured professor and department head who oversaw numerous academic job searches, she knows from experience exactly what gets an academic applicant a job. And as the creator of the popular and widely respected advice site The Professor is In, she has helped countless Ph.D.’s turn themselves into stronger applicants and land their dream careers. Now, for the first time ever, Karen has poured all her best advice into a single handy guide that addresses the most important issues facing any Ph.D., including: -When, where, and what to publish -Writing a foolproof grant application -Cultivating references and crafting the perfect CV -Acing the job talk and campus interview -Avoiding the adjunct trap -Making the leap to nonacademic work, when the time is right The Professor Is In addresses all of these issues, and many more.

A Human History of Emotion

Author : Richard Firth-Godbehere
Publisher : Little, Brown Spark
ISBN 13 : 0316430862
Total Pages : 298 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (164 download)

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Book Synopsis A Human History of Emotion by : Richard Firth-Godbehere

Download or read book A Human History of Emotion written by Richard Firth-Godbehere and published by Little, Brown Spark. This book was released on 2021-11-16 with total page 298 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A sweeping exploration of the ways in which emotions shaped the course of human history, and how our experience and understanding of emotions have evolved along with us. "Eye-opening and thought-provoking!” (Gina Rippon, author of The Gendered Brain) We humans like to think of ourselves as rational creatures, who, as a species, have relied on calculation and intellect to survive. But many of the most important moments in our history had little to do with cold, hard facts and a lot to do with feelings. Events ranging from the origins of philosophy to the birth of the world’s major religions, the fall of Rome, the Scientific Revolution, and some of the bloodiest wars that humanity has ever experienced can’t be properly understood without understanding emotions. Drawing on psychology, neuroscience, philosophy, art, and religious history, Richard Firth-Godbehere takes readers on a fascinating and wide ranging tour of the central and often under-appreciated role emotions have played in human societies around the world and throughout history—from Ancient Greece to Gambia, Japan, the Ottoman Empire, the United States, and beyond. A Human History of Emotion vividly illustrates how our understanding and experience of emotions has changed over time, and how our beliefs about feelings—and our feelings themselves—profoundly shaped us and the world we inhabit.

Schadenfreude

Author : Lawrence Dorfman
Publisher : Skyhorse
ISBN 13 : 9781626361744
Total Pages : 176 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (617 download)

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Book Synopsis Schadenfreude by : Lawrence Dorfman

Download or read book Schadenfreude written by Lawrence Dorfman and published by Skyhorse. This book was released on 2013-11-06 with total page 176 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Scha•den•freu•de: noun, often capitalized \'shä-d?n-?fro?i-d?\ Schadenfreude i/'???d?nfr??d?/ (German: ['?a?d?n?f???d?]): pleasure derived from the misfortunes of others. “Revenge is a dish best served cold.” We’ve all heard the phrase. It was made most famous in the Godfather movies. And some do credit this saying to the Mafia, dating back to the old country of Sicily. Others say it had its origins in Spain. Still others claim it for the Pashtuns, as a precursor to the Afghan way of life. And there are many who say its direct history stems from Kahless the Unforgettable, banished leader of the Klingons. Typically, the Germans beat the rest of the world hands down when it comes to conjuring a specific word that sums it up. And that word is Schadenfreude. Those of us that are human (most of the book-buying public), whether we will admit it or not, have at some point or another gained malicious delight from the misfortune of others. Most often tied to a vaguely biblical outlook, it is a perfect summing up of a perfectly human trait. Nobody wants to admit it, but we all do it . . . and, often times, gleefully.

Blow Your House Down

Author : Gina Frangello
Publisher : Catapult
ISBN 13 : 1640093176
Total Pages : 336 pages
Book Rating : 4.6/5 (4 download)

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Book Synopsis Blow Your House Down by : Gina Frangello

Download or read book Blow Your House Down written by Gina Frangello and published by Catapult. This book was released on 2021-04-06 with total page 336 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A New York Times Book Review Editors' Choice • A Good Morning America Recommended Book • A LitReactor Best Book of the Year • A BuzzFeed Most Anticipated Book of the Year • A Lit Hub Most Anticipated Book of the Year • A Rumpus Most Anticipated Book of the Year • A Bustle Most Anticipated Book of the Month "A pathbreaking feminist manifesto, impossible to put down or dismiss. Gina Frangello tells the morally complex story of her adulterous relationship with a lover and her shortcomings as a mother, and in doing so, highlights the forces that shaped, silenced, and shamed her: everyday misogyny, puritanical expectations regarding female sexuality and maternal sacrifice, and male oppression." —Adrienne Brodeur, author of Wild Game Gina Frangello spent her early adulthood trying to outrun a youth marked by poverty and violence. Now a long-married wife and devoted mother, the better life she carefully built is emotionally upended by the death of her closest friend. Soon, awakened to fault lines in her troubled marriage, Frangello is caught up in a recklessly passionate affair, leading a double life while continuing to project the image of the perfect family. When her secrets are finally uncovered, both her home and her identity will implode, testing the limits of desire, responsibility, love, and forgiveness. Blow Your House Down is a powerful testimony about the ways our culture seeks to cage women in traditional narratives of self-sacrifice and erasure. Frangello uses her personal story to examine the place of women in contemporary society: the violence they experience, the rage they suppress, the ways their bodies often reveal what they cannot say aloud, and finally, what it means to transgress "being good" in order to reclaim your own life.