{"id":895,"date":"2012-03-23T10:00:38","date_gmt":"2012-03-23T17:00:38","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/?p=895"},"modified":"2012-03-23T10:05:21","modified_gmt":"2012-03-23T17:05:21","slug":"the-curious-appeal-of-tragedy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/2012\/film-2\/the-curious-appeal-of-tragedy\/","title":{"rendered":"The Curious Appeal of Tragedy"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>After watching the film, Love Liza<\/a> with the incredibly talented Philip Seymour Hoffman<\/a>, I wondered what it was about this story that kept me engaged. It was depressing.\u00a0 And yet, the film won the Waldo Salt<\/a> screenwriting award at the Sundance Film Festival<\/a> in 2002. It\u2019s about a man who becomes incredibly lost and disturbed following the death of his wife. What is it about this type of tragedy that keeps me and you glued to the screen?<\/p>\n

Are we hooked on tragedy because there but for the grace of God go I? <\/em>Is this what compels us to keep watching? Or have we all had some brush with tragedy, so much so, that we understand the depth of another man or woman\u2019s despair? Or do we watch someone self-destruct because we don\u2019t understand and want to?<\/p>\n

As a therapist for over 25 years, I saw many depressed people. People like the character that Philip Seymour Hoffman played. Some depressions<\/a> were once thought to have arisen from some genetic predisposition.\u00a0 In other words, some people were thought to have the genes that made it harder for them to enjoy life. They had to work hard to keep themselves from going over the edge. Today, the medical profession doesn’t completely rule out genetics but focuses more on the triggers in life that get people down. Like the one in the Love Liza story, where a wife\u2019s death sends her husband into depths so dark he can\u2019t escape.<\/p>\n

Depression is dark; it\u2019s anger, sorrow, frustration, and guilt all wrapped up in an ugly package. Maybe we read and watch these stories to wake ourselves up. To remind ourselves to smile, laugh, and play. To make the choices that gladden our hearts rather than darken them. To keep on the light side, even when we stumble into tragedy ourselves. Laughter and tears are often intertwined.\u00a0 Here\u2019s wishing you much laughter.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

After watching the film, Love Liza with the incredibly talented Philip Seymour Hoffman, I wondered what it was about this story that kept me engaged. It was depressing.\u00a0 And yet,… <\/p>","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[82,88,86],"tags":[292,78,299,298,301,302,300],"class_list":["post-895","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-film-2","category-life","category-therapy-2","tag-depression","tag-diana-stevan","tag-love-liza","tag-philip-seymour-hoffman","tag-sundance-film-festival","tag-tragedy","tag-waldo-salt"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p1LuVB-er","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":1572,"url":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/2014\/film-2\/philip-seymour-hoffman-a-brilliant-but-tortured-artist\/","url_meta":{"origin":895,"position":0},"title":"Philip Seymour Hoffman – A Brilliant but Tortured Artist","author":"Diana Stevan","date":"7 \u041b\u044e\u0442\u043e\u0433\u043e, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"I was relaxing in a hotel room in Miami a few mornings ago, when my husband, Rob, looked up from his newspaper to say, \u201cYou won\u2019t believe who just died. One of the great actors.\u201d Hearing Philip Seymour Hoffman had overdosed on heroin was a shock even though we knew\u2026","rel":"","context":"\u0423 "Film"","block_context":{"text":"Film","link":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/category\/film-2\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Philip Seymour Hoffman","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dianastevan.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/Philip-Seymour-Hoffman-202x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":929,"url":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/2012\/writing\/rebirth-of-a-masterpiece-death-of-a-salesman\/","url_meta":{"origin":895,"position":1},"title":"Rebirth of a Masterpiece – Death of a Salesman","author":"Diana Stevan","date":"16 \u041a\u0432\u0456\u0442\u043d\u044f, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Every once in awhile, a piece of writing sets itself apart from the others in its brilliance. The play, Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller, written in 1949, is that piece of writing. It\u2019s one that still touches the hearts of its audience and leaves it stunned at the\u2026","rel":"","context":"\u0423 "Life"","block_context":{"text":"Life","link":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/category\/life\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dianastevan.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/200px-DeathOfASalesman.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1053,"url":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/2012\/film-2\/what-is-it-about-guns\/","url_meta":{"origin":895,"position":2},"title":"What Is It About Guns?","author":"Diana Stevan","date":"23 \u041b\u0438\u043f\u043d\u044f, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"I\u2019m an optimist by nature, so this has been a hard post to write. And I'm sorry for getting off the writing track here. But the senseless killings\u00a0 at the movie theatre in Aurora, Colorado this past week stopped me in my tracks. I, like many, wanted to make sense\u2026","rel":"","context":"\u0423 "Film"","block_context":{"text":"Film","link":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/category\/film-2\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dianastevan.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/07\/Humphrey-Bogart.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":2242,"url":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/2015\/film-2\/stepping-out-with-liza-minelli\/","url_meta":{"origin":895,"position":3},"title":"Stepping Out With Liza Minnelli","author":"Diana Stevan","date":"7 \u0421\u0435\u0440\u043f\u043d\u044f, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"Stepping Out with Liza Minnelli, shot in 1990, had problems of a different kind than the ones mentioned in my last post about\u00a0Bye Bye Blues. \u00a0Our daughter, Robyn Stevan, was also in this movie. The Cast Stepping Out, adapted from a play by Richard Harris, was supposed to be Liza\u2026","rel":"","context":"\u0423 "Film"","block_context":{"text":"Film","link":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/category\/film-2\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Stepping Out with Liza Minelli","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dianastevan.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/08\/Stepping-Out-162x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":2532,"url":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/2016\/uncategorized\/straight-outta-compton-snubbed-by-academy\/","url_meta":{"origin":895,"position":4},"title":"Straight Outta Compton Snubbed By Academy","author":"Diana Stevan","date":"13 \u0411\u0435\u0440\u0435\u0437\u043d\u044f, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"The Oscars are well over but the whole controversy over #OscarsSoWhite led me to view the wonderful film,\u00a0Straight Outta Compton.\u00a0I was surprised at how great it actually is. To say it should\u2019ve at least been nominated for an Oscar for best film, is a no-brainer. I was stunned by its\u2026","rel":"","context":"\u0423 "Film"","block_context":{"text":"Film","link":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/category\/film-2\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Straight Outta Compton","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dianastevan.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/Straight_Outta_Compton_poster-190x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":6803,"url":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/2025\/life\/the-cracks-in-mental-health-services\/","url_meta":{"origin":895,"position":5},"title":"The Cracks in Mental Health Services","author":"Diana Stevan","date":"12 \u0422\u0440\u0430\u0432\u043d\u044f, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Recently, in Vancouver, British Columbia, we became aware, once again, of the cracks in mental health services. They failed to help those in need and they failed to protect the public from harm. At a Filipino Street Festival in South Vancouver on Saturday, April 26, a mentally ill man drove\u2026","rel":"","context":"\u0423 "Books"","block_context":{"text":"Books","link":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/category\/books\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"cracks in mental health services","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dianastevan.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/luke-jones-DHR8LQRY-fU-unsplash-1-scaled.jpg?fit=675%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dianastevan.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/luke-jones-DHR8LQRY-fU-unsplash-1-scaled.jpg?fit=675%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dianastevan.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/luke-jones-DHR8LQRY-fU-unsplash-1-scaled.jpg?fit=675%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/895","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=895"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/895\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=895"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=895"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dianastevan.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=895"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}