Psychology: Anger, Violence and the daimonic

Anger, Violence and the Daimonic: The Psychological Genesis of Violence, Evil and Creativity Stephen Diamond distinguishes some important differences between anger and psychopathology...

The chronic suppression of anger and rage can and does sow the evil seeds of psychopathology, hatred, and violence... This sweeping denunciation of anger and rage can be found even in the fields of psychology and psychiatry... Many modern clinicians have no appreciation of the nature, meaning, and postiive value of healthy anger and rage.
- Anger, Violence and the Daimonic: The Psychological Genesis of Violence, Evil and Creativity

As Diamond points out, anger and rage should not be equated with violence, madness or evil. Anger is a strong emotional reaction toward something that is displeasing or unacceptable to us. It is a necessary part of being passionate, being creative, and being alive. Of course, anger can lead to destructive behaviour through the choices we make, however, it can also be elevated to inspire us to take action. To be afraid of expressing anger is to deny being fully alive.

It is impossible to read Touch the Top of the World and not see the critical and beneficial role that anger played in Erik Weihenmayer's life. What we see here is an act of tremendous resilience and a leveraging of a deep and festering anger to inspire a new sense of purpose and mission in life. His learning was rich with emotion and passion. Had Erik suppressed his anger toward society, he would have been forced into submission.

To dismiss anger as being something that is not positive or helpful lacks insight. To say that anger should be leveraged into something that eventually has positive and beneficial outcomes helps us see it in a larger more purposeful context. Stephen Diamond states:

The conscious choices we make in relating to the dynamic, psychobiological forces of the daimonic define our humanity.
- Anger, Violence and the Daimonic: The Psychological Genesis of Violence, Evil and Creativity

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