Faux feeling Something done to me
Oppressed
Not a feeling: a thought about what someone did.
‘I think I’m being held down by people or systems with more power than me.’
Why it’s not a feeling
Oppressed describes a relationship of power: being held down by people or systems stronger than you. It can name something real and serious, yet it is still an account of what others are doing rather than of your inner state. Alongside it there is often anger, a sense of powerlessness or a deep weariness.
Feelings underneath
Needs
Saying it as a feeling
‘I feel oppressed.’
When the letting agency raised our rent for the third time in two years and the residents’ letter got no reply, I felt powerless and angry, because I need fairness and autonomy.