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- Title
On grief's sweet sorrow.
- Abstract
This paper draws attention to a neglected aspect of grief: its "sweet" sorrow. This sorrow presents us with a formidable challenge, namely, to explain how what is bitter—the misery of loss—can be found to be sweet. Those drawn into this sorrow suspect that it is somehow too sweet. Are their suspicions well founded? Why is it and it alone sweet to those who delight in it and why is it not just sweet but companion‐like and even dear? Guided by the observations of St. Augustine and C. S. Lewis, I propose that this sorrow is a form of self‐pity that displaces the significant other from the center of one's concern and affords an enhanced intimacy with oneself. The proposal vindicates the impression that one finds in this sorrow a companion that can take the place of the significant other and also positions us to address one of the most fundamental questions that might be raised in connection with grief, namely, whether the one who has died is a proper object of concern or whether our grief is ultimately for ourselves, for a loss that is ours and ours alone.
- Subjects
PHILOSOPHY of emotions; ARENDT, Hannah, 1906-1975; SELF-portraits; FELLOWSHIP
- Publication
European Journal of Philosophy, 2022, Vol 30, Issue 1, p3
- ISSN
0966-8373
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1111/ejop.12649