Schadenfreude, the German idea for taking pleasure in others’ misfortune, seems like an ugly human emotion. But psychologists and philosophers argue that schadenfreude is baked into the human condition and actually is kind of good for us.

This hour, we explore why it’s okay to laugh when someone slips on a banana peel.

GUESTS:

Scott Dikkers: Founding editor of The Onion and the author of How to Write Funny
Lauren Ober: Hosted the Spectacular Failures podcast
John Portmann: Professor of religious studies at the University of Virginia and the author of When Bad Things Happen to Other People

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Colin McEnroe, Eugene Amatruda, Jonathan McNicol, Cat Pastor, and Lily Tyson contributed to this show, which originally aired March 7, 2022.

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There’s no shame in schadenfreude