| Definitions | | catharsis |
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noun (pl=catharses)
- (context, drama) A release of emotional tension after an overwhelming vicarious experience, resulting in the purging or purification of the emotions, as through watching a dramatic production (especially a tragedy). Coined in this sense by Aristotle.
- Seeing the hero's helped her deal with the loss of her parents.
- Any release of emotional tension to the same effect, more widely.
- (context, psychology) A therapeutic technique to relieve tension.
- (context, medicine) purge, Purging of the digestive system.
Etymology: From Ancient Greek "cleansing," "purging" from "I cleanse"
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Full Definition of catharsis
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