Empathy - the power of understanding & imaginatively entering another persons feelings. The capacity to
recognize emotions that are being experienced by another.
Sympathy - the sharing of another's emotions, especially sorrow, anguish, pity & compassion - fellow feeling. The perception, understanding, and reaction to the distress or need of another human being.
Understanding - the ability to learn, judge, make decisions.
One of the things which makes us human is to be able to exhibit the first two emotions. Although very similar, they are subtly different in that the first is more passive, while the second is more active. Both require the third, because without that we can be deceived and manipulated by people simulating a particular emotional state. Not everyone is genuine & honest. We have all told lies, for whatever reason.
I am curious about what instinct, body language, facial expressions, tone of voice, choice of language give us the clues to be able to interpret someone else's state of being? What makes some people really good at it, & some seemingly completely oblivious?
I also wonder what mechanism enables us to switch off empathy, sympathy & understanding? Is there a safety valve, which we possess, because no one can live in a permanent state of heightened awareness to other people's pain and suffering?
We are confronted daily by graphic images of a huge range of human suffering in the newspapers & the media. Flooding in the UK - Bush fires in Australia - Relentless winter ice & snow storms on the East coast of America. People die from malnutrition, lack of clean drinking water, infectious disease. Then there are the current wars around the world.
The list is endless & we could be forgiven for a feeling of powerlessness in the face of such an overwhelming need for our compassion & aid. Indeed the Daily Mail currently has a petition to use part of our foreign aid
budget to help the thousands of British families whose lives have been
made a misery by the floods, under the banner of "charity begins at home". I hope we have more sense than to sign it.
We should undoubtedly be exercising empathy & sympathy to all the people affected by the flooding. Also to the hundreds of people working night and day to mitigate the effects of the unique weather conditions.
What we should not be doing is equating that to the suffering of people trapped in dire poverty or in wars not of their own making. There is a difference & we should understand what it is & continue to fight against it.
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