Book 7 / Chapter 6
Paragraph 4 - Anger and Wanton Outrage
Explanation - Part By Part
"Further, no one commits wanton outrage with a feeling of pain, but every one who acts in anger acts with pain, while the man who commits outrage acts with pleasure."
Aristotle is contrasting two types of behavior: actions driven by anger and actions driven by appetite or desire. When people act out of anger, they are often in a state of inner turmoil or pain—they feel upset or wronged. On the other hand, when someone commits wanton outrage (a deliberate and reckless act, often harmful), it comes from a place of seeking pleasure or indulgence, not pain. Aristotle is highlighting the key difference that angry actions are reactive and stem from suffering, while actions driven by appetite or desire often bring enjoyment to the one committing them, even though they may harm others.
"If, then, those acts at which it is most just to be angry are more criminal than others, the incontinence which is due to appetite is the more criminal; for there is no wanton outrage involved in anger."
Aristotle is presenting a comparison here between actions driven by anger and those driven by desire or appetite. He argues that even when anger leads someone to act wrongfully, anger itself is rooted in pain and distress. In contrast, actions driven by appetite or desire (such as greed, lust, or indulgence) are often committed in the pursuit of pleasure.
What Aristotle is emphasizing is that when people do wrong to satisfy their desires, it is worse—or more "criminal"—than when they act out of anger. Why? Because anger doesn’t involve wanton outrage—that is, reckless or deliberate harm done for selfish or indulgent pleasure. Anger comes from feeling wronged or violated, and it is often accompanied by suffering, not joy. On the other hand, wrongdoing motivated by appetite involves acting without regard for others, purely for one’s own gratification, which makes it more blameworthy.
In short, indulgence in desires leads to actions that are ethically worse because they are intentional and self-serving, while anger, though blameworthy, comes from a place of emotional pain rather than selfish pleasure.