To think some people are just permanently angry?

[IcyJadePoet]

We all know that one person who seems mad at the world 24/7. Do they just enjoy being that way or is it something deeper?

If you're not at peace with yourself, it usually needs some form of externalisation. That's how I see it. I've known one or two, but not kept them in my life.

Some people use anger to fuel them like for their work or voluntary work. I know many people who work in mental health and for DV charities who use their (fantastic) rage to power themselves

anger is also a cover for other emotions, like hurt or rejection. If my partner did something ‘wrong’ in the moment my first response might be anger rather than saying ‘oh I’m hurt you said that’.

anger is just a (useful) emotion. If people are expressing it in a violent or destructive way then we have a problem.

My brother describes himself as an angry man and he is. Constantly angry with people, society, the news, street furniture, neighbours, politics, relations, weather, the government, his GP, himself......well, everything really.

I don't think he enjoys it or anything really. He has always been like it.

I think it can become a coping mechanism for some people. Anger is often an easier emotion to deal with and express than fear, anxiety, helplessness, frustration, lack of self confidence - all of which are often the underlying basis of anger. And it’s a vicious cycle in a lot of ways: once you begin to approach things angrily, the less well people respond to you, the less positive your experiences of the world are, the less good your feedback loop etc - which just compounds all those feelings further. No, I don’t think angry people like being angry, but emotional literacy takes time and insight to achieve.

Is anger always a bad thing? "If you're not angry you're not paying attention"?

My father uses it for attention.

It’s a shield against the world for people without coping mechanisms isn’t it? See also: eternally miserable.