Season 3, Episode 7: What To Do If You Are Feeling Bitter

Climate Change and Happiness

image credit | Andre Hunter

Season 3, Episode 7: What To Do If You Are Feeling Bitter

Thomas and Panu reflected on varieties of the feeling of bitterness in response to the chronic stress of climate and environmental problems—ranging from Finnish concepts like epäreiluuden tunne (unfairness-feeling) to the “Cassandrafreude” described by climate scientists (the bitter pleasure of things going wrong in exactly the way you predicted, but no one believed you when it could have made a difference). As Panu observed, it is a psychological and ethical challenge to be proud (in a healthy way) of one’s own good actions, including “chosen losses” where a conscious decision is made to relinquish something, and to avoid (at least overly strong) bitterness. Thomas also referenced thinkers like Myisha Cherry and Audre Lorde who highlight the ethical reasons for not forgiving in the face of betrayals and injustice.

Links

• Myisha Cherry: Why I Don't Believe in Forgiveness

• Helen Rosner, 2021 A Philosopher’s Defense of Anger

• Audre Lorde 1981 The Uses of Anger: Women Responding to Racism

• Rosemary Randall 2009 Loss and Climate Change: The Cost of Parallel Narratives (see discussion of types of losses)

• Thea Gregerson et al 2023 The strength and content of climate anger

• See also Harriët Bergman 2023. Anger in Response to Climate Breakdown (Paywall)

Transcript

[The Climate Change and Happiness Transcript is on holiday.]