catharsis

[kuh-thahr-sis] /kəˈθɑr sɪs/
noun, plural catharses
[kuh-thahr-seez] /kəˈθɑr siz/ (Show IPA)
1.
the purging of the emotions or relieving of emotional tensions, especially through certain kinds of art, as tragedy or music.
2.
Medicine/Medical, purgation.
3.
Psychiatry.
  1. psychotherapy that encourages or permits the discharge of pent-up, socially unacceptable affects.
  2. discharge of pent-up emotions so as to result in the alleviation of symptoms or the permanent relief of the condition.
Origin
1795-1805; < Neo-Latin < Greek kátharsis a cleansing, equivalent to kathar- (variant stem of kathaírein to cleanse, derivative of katharós pure) + -sis -sis
Related forms
hypercatharsis, noun
Examples from the web for catharsis
  • Large segments of the news seem calculated to facilitate the catharsis of our built-up resentment.
  • And by not limiting us, it provides a catharsis for the moral and social burdens of everyday life.
  • Then there will be catharsis, the experience of purgation and relief.
  • His actions give catharsis to perennial adult frustration with teenagers.
  • The catharsis of anger can act against interests for reconciliation.
  • Participants rated significance of curative factors of catharsis, cohesion, and insight in their treatment.
  • The term catharsis has been used for centuries as a medical term meaning a purging.
British Dictionary definitions for catharsis

catharsis

/kəˈθɑːsɪs/
noun (pl) -ses
1.
(in Aristotelian literary criticism) the purging or purification of the emotions through the evocation of pity and fear, as in tragedy
2.
(psychoanal) the bringing of repressed ideas or experiences into consciousness, thus relieving tensions See also abreaction
3.
purgation, esp of the bowels
Word Origin
C19: New Latin, from Greek katharsis, from kathairein to purge, purify
Word Origin and History for catharsis
n.

1803, "bodily purging," from Latinized form of Greek katharsis "purging, cleansing," from stem of kathairein "to purify, purge," from katharos "pure, clear of dirt, clean, spotless; open, free; clear of shame or guilt; purified" (with most of the extended senses now found in Modern English clear, clean, pure), of unknown origin. Originally medical in English; of emotions from 1872; psychotherapy sense first recorded 1909, in Brill's translation of Freud.

catharsis in Medicine

catharsis ca·thar·sis (kə-thär'sĭs)
n. pl. ca·thar·ses (-sēz)

  1. Purgation.

  2. A psychological technique used to relieve tension and anxiety by bringing repressed feelings and fears to consciousness.

  3. The therapeutic result of this process; abreaction.

catharsis in Culture
catharsis [(kuh-thahr-suhs)]

An experience of emotional release and purification, often inspired by or through art. In psychoanalysis, catharsis is the release of tension and anxiety that results from bringing repressed feelings and memories into consciousness.