Definition Essay: The Role Of Empathy In Our Life
The Webster Merriam Dictionary defines empathy as “the feeling that you understand and share another person's experiences and emotions : the ability to share someone else's feelings”. All though the definition for empathy in the dictionary has some great points, over this past quarter I have learnt this simple word is so much more. Over the past 200,000 years when human life and speech ` evolved there has been so many discoveries that have changed our existence, and in more way than one empathy was brought up. Empathy occurs in our everyday life, it is always around us. In order for our human life to develop more and become stronger and more understanding to issues empathy needs to be embraced and brought to everyone's attention.
In ecological terms, the prefix em- means completely or on both sides. The suffix pathos means feeling. So, empathy is feeling with people. The definition of empathy I choose to live by is “to put yourself at the same emotional state as someone else for their benefit.” I choose this because empathy to me is more than just a feeling that someone else is feeling. To me, empathy is feeling what someone else is feeling so they don’t feel alone. It’s doing it so they know that you’ve been there too, unlike sympathy which is feeling something for someone, and driving disconnection. Empathy is sharing a feeling with …show more content…
This is proven true in the case of some criminals. If one is thinking about how what he or she is doing impacts or affects the world and people around them, that shows that they have empathy. A criminal thinking about the innocent people who might lose something important, they’re less likely to commit a crime. If the person doesn’t think or care about how the outcomes of their actions impact the people and things in the world around them, they might not feel guilty committing even the most horrific of
In ecological terms, the prefix em- means completely or on both sides. The suffix pathos means feeling. So, empathy is feeling with people. The definition of empathy I choose to live by is “to put yourself at the same emotional state as someone else for their benefit.” I choose this because empathy to me is more than just a feeling that someone else is feeling. To me, empathy is feeling what someone else is feeling so they don’t feel alone. It’s doing it so they know that you’ve been there too, unlike sympathy which is feeling something for someone, and driving disconnection. Empathy is sharing a feeling with …show more content…
This is proven true in the case of some criminals. If one is thinking about how what he or she is doing impacts or affects the world and people around them, that shows that they have empathy. A criminal thinking about the innocent people who might lose something important, they’re less likely to commit a crime. If the person doesn’t think or care about how the outcomes of their actions impact the people and things in the world around them, they might not feel guilty committing even the most horrific of