The unseen Psychology behind the Revenge Theory

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Published On: 12th July, 2024

Authored By: Somya Singh
Jaipur National University
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Abstract

Revenge is a small 7-letter word but includes the most dangerous and heinous feeling, bitterness and atrocious shades. It is not just a sensation of retribution or vengeance for the destruction or loss suffered by the person but also an eccentricity to accomplish one’s obstinacy. If it is not controlled timely, then it can become a very serious psychological disorder that will result in various crimes such as serial killing, mass murder, etc, in short, violent crimes will become more widespread. Most people believe that taking revenge is a way to satisfy their quest for justice and to award the punishment to the wrongdoer but it will give you pleasure for the least duration and causes the same approach in the mind of the one whom the person has taken the revenge and hence resulting in the never-ending cycle of retribution. Sometimes it is for a short duration of time and occasionally it becomes long-lasting and firm as well as becomes the persona of the person. But what ignites this feeling? What are the causes and problems associated with it? What are the unseen and unheard psychological feelings behind it? What are the alternative ways for the same? Everything is discussed in this study. There is a glimpse of some nuances of the revenge and the psychological factor behind it. An overview of the theories, studies, examples, and research concerning retribution and revenge is presented in this study.

Keywords: atrocious, retribution, vengeance, eccentricity, obstinacy, psychological disorder, violent crimes, persona, nuances

Introduction

Revenge is an act of passion; vengeance of justice. Injuries are revenged; crimes are avenged.

                                                                           Samuel Johnson

Imagine someone humiliates you in front of a huge throng, what will you feel at that time, or what will your nerves react to that situation and what will your instant instinct tell you to do? Exactly, to take revenge for your insult and pay back what he has given to you or imagine another scenario where you were hurt physically and sustained certain injuries, what will be your next move, Again to inflict the same pain and injury to that person? But is this sufficient to heal your pain and sorrow? Most people think that by setting the scores they became satisfied and pleased although it was not so really, once they became the player of this game they become habitual of that and gradually and eventually they are getting pleasure in seeking vengeance by inflicting pain on others even for the pity matters.

Revenge in simple expression means an act of inflicting injury or harm on others with the view to punish the perpetrator for their wrongdoing. It is an extreme emotion that is present in each creature and present for every single individual. It is a very dominant inner compulsion that needs to be resisted by the person before it takes any ugly turn. Generally, when the person exacts vengeance, at the initial point, the person feels better and pleased but sooner or later, that emotion converts into unpleasantness and restlessness, and the person from whom the revenge was sought, burns to take the revenge, and this will go on in a constant and unbroken loop, making the cycle of retaliation and hence this revenge game will never gonna end.

Undoubtedly, the main reason behind taking revenge is jumping on the bandwagon i.e., people are fascinated by the method of taking revenge which is portrayed by most of the movies and shows, and think that in real life also they will extract revenge in the same way. But in actuality, they were digging the hole for themselves and trapping themselves in the never-ending circle of retribution.

In reality, one can never seek revenge and ends up harming and hurting oneself only. Revenge does not always mean causing pain and suffering to the other but there are certainly healthy ways through which one can quench his/her thirst for retribution, they are;

  • Stimulate oneself towards great triumph
  • Don’t get de-motivated by the others
  • Be always happy and smiling and just show that you don’t mind their cheap behavior
  • To move on

 As rightly said by Frank Sinatra “The best revenge is massive success.” So don’t pay heed to the pointless conversation and rude behavior of the other and chastise the perpetrator legally and within the framework provided by the rule instead of taking the law into the hands, it will be the paramount way of taking revenge.

Historical Background

Francis Bacon was the foremost person who described the expression revenge as “Wild Justice” which puts everything out of the law and rules. Sometimes it is exchangeable with the word Feud or Blood Feud, which is carried for a long period of time by the families or tribal people as the mark of their tradition and culture and they consider it as an honour for them.

They were mostly practiced during the time of pre-industrial era and even continue today in most parts of the country, remarkably in Albania where they follow the tradition of gjakmarrja or “blood feuds” in, the Kurdish regions of Turkey and in Papua New Guinea.

In Japan, killings for vengeance are called “katakiuchi”. And also involves the associations of an offender. Today, katakiuchi is most frequently pursued by peaceful means, but revenge remains a central element of Japanese civilization.

Traditionally, there were two groups who had an adverse philosophy on revenge. The Bible in Exodus 21:23 allows the one to pay back that is an eye for an eye, similar crime will be equal to similar punishment, and the person if he is responsible for a crime then he will be responsible for the punishment some of the key points of it while another personality Martin Luther King who always opposes the church and the Bible responds that this groundless and futile thinking is nothing but will wipe out the entire humankind and trap them in a never-ending cycle of retribution. He further said that an eye for an eye makes everyone blind.

Practical Aspect

Usually, people think that this all is baseless and groundless points, it is like all talk and no show but it is not in actuality, there is a group of Swiss Scientists who conducted an experiment to establish what will happen when someone decides to seek the revenge, what will be the brain motion and how it reacts.

First of all, they arranged a game, in which the people who were being cheated or defeated by using fraudulent means, were taken as a sample. They were asked about how they feel about being cheated and scanned their brains for comparative study. Then they provide them an opportunity to chastise those who use unfair means in the game and again record their brain activity.

Findings:  

  1. They found that as soon as the victims of an unfair game contemplated for seeking the revenge there is a flash in their brain which indicates that their brain is functioning fast and there is a stir in the operation of the brain.
  2. The moment when they were planning, it was quiet tranquil, and pleasing.
  3. But this only lasts for a few minutes and this feeling is not everlasting and not keeps pleasing and rewarding.

This indicates that revenge is not an absolute and ultimate weapon to seek justice but has a repulsive effect on the person who hunts for it.

Why (to take revenge)?

Now, the most awaited question is what ignites the feeling of vengeance? Why the people choose this alternative way to seek justice, even though each and everyone knows that this will cause potential damage, destruction, and death rather than any potential benefit and victory? The answer to this is very straightforward as it is like an ointment on the abrasion that was caused by the other person or to rectify and restore the same position as before the injury was caused.

But has anyone thought that every coin has two sides, if revenge has a soothing effect then it has a repulsive effect as well though people usually weigh potential victory over the potential damage and destruction which are sometimes latent or unseen mysteries.

The motives behind the retaliation are:

  1. Feeling injustice: when the person thinks that his/her grievances are not restored and he/she didn’t have adequate and effective justice then they urge for revenge so that they can do justice by themselves and rectify the incorrectness and punish the doer.
  2. Emotional turmoil: when the person faces emotional or mental breakdown, humiliation, betrayal, anger, etc. it works as fuel in the fire and compels the person to take vengeance.

How (to take revenge)?

Taking revenge involves a lengthy process and lots of guts and rage, as a minute blunder and omission in this can prove fatal for the person itself. So he needs to be more cautious and careful while taking the revenge. It includes certain processes before finally taking up the payback:

Contemplation: This is the first stage, where the sufferer thinks about the injury he suffered and starts making plans and strategies for procuring revenge. The possible way, which will be more dangerous and heinous and he could quench his thrust.

Anticipation:  As soon as the person accepts the plans, he already starts experiencing the satisfaction and contending and imagining his victory.

Implementation: The very final stage is the execution of the planning that he made so that he can punish the wrongdoer get justice and feel a short period of relief.

Case Study

There are certain real-life events that show how the people took their revenge for the pain and sorrow they suffered and to seek justice.

Akku Yadav:  He was a disreputable gang leader who was guilty of 40 sexual assaults. He was still on bail and it was anticipated that he could be released by the court. So, hundreds of local women encircled him out of the court threw the chili powder and sandals on him, and also hit him with the stones. Even one of them stabbed him with the knife 70 times and it took 15 minutes to pay back and settle the score.

Megan Slake: She was a mother of an 8-year-old girl who was raped and she was quite sure that it has been committed by her neighbor but as there is a lack of evidence she can’t convict him. One day when she was at the restaurant he saw his neighbor over there and the next day she came to know that her neighbor was accused of murdering his wife on the very same day when she saw him at the restaurant but did not tell anyone about his alibi deliberately so that she can take her revenge and convict him.

The first case shows the brutality of taking revenge which is obviously pleasing and rewarding for some time but seeking this type of revenge may have the opposite effect on the person itself because those who have killed the person in order to seek revenge will undergo imprisonment and sentence.

But the second case shows the healthy way of taking the revenge without use of any unfair or illegal means and not gave ascend to any type of cycle of retaliation. The mother got justice for her daughter and the neighbor was also convicted for his bad deeds.

Consequences

You sow what you reap, a very well-known line which means if you are doing good good deeds will definitely come to you in a positive manner and if you committed the wrong then you have to face the music and face the punishment for the same. Similarly, there are certain consequences of taking revenge which one should keep in mind while extracting the vengeance.

  • It may be a transitory relief and satisfactory because you punish the perpetrator but at the same time it releases the unenthusiastic emotions in the brain and the person was never able to heal from that and it hinders the functioning of the brain. It has a long-term effect on the brain.
  • When once the person is trapped in this dark game, he/she becomes isolated from society and lives an alone, aloof, and lonely life which not only affects the physical personality of the person but also hits its mental being.
  • Lastly, it became the never-ending circle of seeking revenge, once you are done taking revenge on the wrongdoer and get justice, the same feeling will ignite in the mind of the wrongdoer and prompt him to strike back in revert and this is how it will continue and never gonna end.

Alternative Way

What now?  The question that arises in the mind of the people, is that if revenge is not a correct way to seek justice then what one should do, the answer to this is that there are certain alternative ways through which the ends of justice can be achieved.

  • Condonation: The best substitute for taking revenge is to forgive the wrongdoer and let him go pardon him and try to give him one more chance to transform himself because sometimes your good behavior changes the other’s bad conduct. It has been shown that this way will keep one’s mental being intact.
  • Mediation: Choose Negotiations, Dialogue, and Mediation as a way to resolve disputes and conflicts. Communication is an effective way to manage big and complex evils and harm.
  • Legal Help: Sometimes the injustice is harsh and painful, in which neither you can forgive the wrongdoer nor you want to negotiate with him, in that case, the only remedy which is available is to approach the gate of the courts and seek legal help for your grievances. The legal help will prevent protracted injury and provide the appropriate justice to the victim and efficient punishment to the wrongdoer.

Conclusion

Though it is relatively new, the scientific study of retribution has a long history. Even while revenge is often used in mythology and narrative, it wasn’t until much later in the 20th century that it was discussed in academic writing. However, with a wide range of ideas and a cross-disciplinary scope, vengeance study is currently a rapidly expanding field in social science. To explain the why, when, and how of retaliation, we examine and incorporate corpuses of data from organizational behavior, sociology, psychology, and anthropology, among other fields.

Therapeutic psychology and treatment pay little attention to revenge, relying mostly on the clinician’s therapeutic assessment. Currently, there is disagreement among therapists on the classification of feelings of revenge as a good or bad thing. Improved comprehension typically results in better support for people experiencing sentiments and ideas of retaliation; this could, in turn, stop the behavior from escalating to the point of homicide, benefiting the patient as well as society at large.

References

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