What is it about tragedy that draws people in and captures our extreme attention?

Question

I'm doing a research paper on how the film Apollo 13 shows that people are infatuated with tragedy... what is it about tragedy that draws people in and makes us want to watch and know more about it? Especially when the tragedies don't have to do with us? Things like the death of Princess Diana, how come the entire world was in grief? And the Kennedy family's many tragedies? If you can give me any insite, please leave your name, because I'll need to quote it. Thanks.

Answer 1

Tragedy makes us (people of any race/nation/gender/etc.) somehow take notice of our own lives, and reflect about who we are, what makes us what we are, and so much more.

Typically a tragedy involves some kind of death (although tragedy can be sickness, war, etc.). That ultimate ending can be so hard to accept, that our own minds want to know if our individual selves are ready for death. It also shakes a human being to the core, because we see the things we have done in the past, and how we have learned from them. We also realize our unlived future... our children and grandchildren, our friends, our potential experiences in work, life, etc.

Humans are inheritantly needy... need to be touched, loved, appreciated, connected. A tragedy helps our need to be involved in the lives of others... we want to share in the grief in order to help get through it.

Sadly, some people just enjoy tragedy as a morbid example of the badness of the world.

I think that a tragedy simply reminds us of how good life is, and not to take it forgranted.

Answer 2

Morbid curiosity. The same thing that makes people slow down at an accident scene. Just in case they might see some blood. Why do people go to car races? To see a crash. Why do people go to bullfights? To see blood. Why do people attend boxing matches? To see blood. It's that "thank God that didn't happen to me" syndrome. My name is Sharon Cornett - if you want to quote me you have my permission. It really is just human nature to revel in the tragic lives of others so your own pathetic little life will look better in comparison.