Anger is an emotion which triggers
  when your expectations are dissappointed.[^anger-loss]
  The breach of expectations is interpreted as a harm
  (or in some cases, it might actually be a harm).
Anger orients you towards a blamed _source of harm_,
  and impells _defensive aggression_
  against that blamed source.
If the blaming reflex correctly identifies
  the source of harm,
  then attacking that source
  might injure it so it can no longer inflict harm,
  or might discourage further harm
  by demonstrating willingness to retaliate.

[^anger-loss]: See <InternalLink to='/ref/panksepp/affective-neuroscience' frag='Anger and Frustration'>Panksepp, _Affective Neuroscience_</InternalLink> and <InternalLink to='/ref/panksepp/affective-neuroscience' frag='Frustration-Centric Anger'>Panksepp, _Affective Neuroscience_</InternalLink>. Anger is analagously triggered by restricting freedom (cf <InternalLink to='/ref/panksepp/affective-neuroscience' frag='Anger and Freedom Restriction'>Panksepp, _Affective Neuroscience_</InternalLink>).

## Misperceived Harm from Frustrating Expectations
> You told your friend last week that you were moving,
> and you thought they were going to help you out.
> When you call them that morning, they sound confused.
> "Oh, I'm sorry," they apologize, "I have work...I had no idea
> you thought I'd be there." You get mad that now you have to move alone,
> but after a few seconds, you realize that you should have
> voice your expectations.

The core of the trigger for Anger
  is a disappointed expectation.
  When reality does not meet our expectations,
  Anger destructively externalizes blame,
  instead of updating our expectations.[^panksepp-anger-extern]
  Sometimes this externalization is very helpful,
  impelling us to make a better world around us,
  to right injustices, or to protect ourselves from predators.

However, Anger will _feel_ justified for any expectation breach,
  even if it comes from an unrealistic or impossible expectation.
  It is critically important to evaluate how reasonable
  are expectations are when we get Angry,
  or else we might spend our lives
  tilting at windmills.

Even when our expectations are achievable,
  the defensive aggression which Anger impels
  can easily make things worse.
  If there is an actually malicious actor standing
  preventing your expectations from realizing,
  then lashing out against them might push them back.
  However, everyone involved was just doing their jobs,
  trying their best to be a good person,
  then defensive aggression might actually create malice
  where there wasn't any before.

Sometimes, we are disappointed by a system,
  dispassionate processes operating without any intent.
Being Angry at systems is generally futile and destructive.
  If your car doesn't work properly,
  kicking it or banging on the hood
  is far more likely to upset the system's functioning
  than to magically coerce it into functioning.
  Systems are not dissuaded by being attacked,
  and though they might be destroyed with enough ferocity,
  a measured recallibration or process adjustment
  is almost surely more likely to yield better results.
  Systemic malfunctions are simply always
  incorrect targets for anger.

[^panksepp-anger-extern]: <InternalLink to='/ref/panksepp/affective-neuroscience' frag='Anger Externalization'>Panksepp, _Affective Neuroscience_</InternalLink>

## Misperceptions of the Blame Reflex
> Walking to get some water in the middle of the night,
> you stub your toe on your table. Your Anger surges,
> and you curse at your table and hit it with your hand,
> inneffectually, only hurting yourself more.
> After a few seconds, the Anger subsides,
> and you feel quite silly having blamed the table
> for your mistake.

Not all emotions require a target.
  You can be afraid, for instance, of a situation,
  without being afraid of any specific identifiable feature in your environment.
  Anger, however, wants a target.
  To defensively lash out, it needs something to lash out _at_.
  To find this target,
  Anger is naturally paired with a strong _Blame Reflex_,
  which attempts to identify the source of the harm
  as some living agent[^panksepp-living] nearby[^panksepp-blame-near].
  Anger without a blame target is an uncomfortable, unstable state (cf Girard),
  so our natural blame reflex will happily settle on a poor explanation
  rather than leave a harm unexplained.  

Because blame orients a feeler towards defensive aggression,
  it must identify a single cause.
  If there are multiple causes for a harm,
  blame will prefer causes which are nearer and which seem like living agents.
  If there are no realistic living agents,
  we may anthropomorphize a non-living thing,
  as in the example above with the table,
  and will perceive malicious intent
  even if it doesn't exist.
  If there are many such living agents,
  blame may group these into a perceived "super agent",
  perceiving collaboration and conspiracy
  even if the agents are operating independently.

All of these biases for Blame are optimized for our ancestral environment.
  If our ancestor was hunting in a forest,
  and something went wrong,
  randomly attacking would at best likely
  dissuade any predators, and at worst
  wouldn't hurt anything important.
In our modern environment, however,
  these biases are far less useful.
  Most of our modern problems
  involve complicated systems,
  with many interconnected causes.
  Our expectations stretch far into the future,
  and can be breached by any number of
  unintentional side-effects.

_For more on how emotions influence causal reasoning, see "Cause and Affect"_.

## Transcending our Destructive Nature
> "You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.'
> But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you..."  
> 
> ― Jesus (Matthew 5:43-44, NASB)

In our modern world, the greatest predator of humans
  is other humans.
  Our myths recount many stories
  of revenge spiraling out of control,
  drawing more and more lives into the grave
  before it burns out.
  Modern societies try, and often succeed,
  to justly punish wrongdoers
  so that none of us have to realiate ourselves.
  In a just society, no one would need to be angry,
  because the rule of law would sufficiently deter
  unjust harm.

Forgiveness is one of the most momentous
  emotional innovations in history.
  A primary tenent of Christianity,
  it has spread across the world
  and now enjoys widespread acknowledgement
  as a strategy for peace,
  even if it is not always followed.
The initial Christian arguments for forgiveness
  did not ask for a just society as a prerequisite,
  it claimed forgiveness would provide intrinsic
  religious rewards.
Though less convincing to non-believers,
  there is certainly much to be admired
  in those who can bring justice and harmony
  with peace, not with war.

Perhaps humans will trascend Anger
  via the external path of making just societies.
Perhaps we will tread the internal path
  of forgiveness.
Or, maybe, we will hold on to this
  miscalibrated emotion until the end of our species.
If one day, us humans do destroy ourselves,
  Anger will likely have played a major role.


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When is Anger Wrong?