EMBODIED FURY: TRACING THE ANATOMY OF ANGER IN LITERATURE AND HUMAN PHYSIOLOGY
Abstract
This paper examines the physiological manifestations of anger within the human body, linking these responses to psychological theories and literary representations. By exploring the body’s response to anger—from increased heart rate and muscular tension to altered respiration and hormonal changes—and integrating empirical data from contemporary psychological research, the study underscores the inseparability of emotional and somatic experiences. Drawing on literary works such as Shakespeare’s Othello, Homer’s The Iliad, and Blake’s poetry, alongside modern psychological theories like emotion regulation, neurobiological responses to anger, and the frustration-aggression hypothesis, this paper reveals how deeply anger is embedded in our biological systems and cultural imagination.
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