Let’s say you’re mad at someone close to you, so you go talk to your best friend about it to vent. You explain everything, and get it off your chest. Is it then appropriate to go to another friend or family member about the problem, and vent to them? Or does the “venting” then become complaining? What exactly determines the difference between the two?
Just something to ponder. :smack:
I think “venting” is the initial release of tension. Repeatedly telling the tale of woe is complaining.
Max.
I think it depends on the degree of anger and how one vents. As you described it–getting it off your chest–I’d think that should be the end of it, but not everyone vents in one complete episode. Some use the pressure-valve approach, releasing just a little at a time as the anger reaches a dangerous level. They might unleash little “vents” over a period of months, even years, until the source of the anger eventually becomes a distant memory. It seems like prolonged complaining to those who have to listen to it, but to the venter it might just be a way of sparing innocent bystanders the full force of an all-out fit of rage.
When do “bitching” and “whining” come into play?