Analysis Of Barbara Lazear Ascher's On Compassion

Among the streets of New York, as well as many other places across America for that matter, the number of homeless is steadily rising. In her essay, “On Compassion,” Barbara Lazear Ascher examines the growing problem while describing a particular expirience which explains her interest in the topic. Her example is very riveting, and the exposing of the problem gives way to theories towards human compassion and empathy, which I found to be very agreeable. As a New York City resident, Ascher is no stranger to homelessness. The two examples she provides display the actions of homeless men and the compassion shown to them by ordinary citizens. For example, she observes as one man enters a small French bread shop. It is apparently very visible that he is homeless, as she states, “He wears a stained blanket pulled up …show more content…
Ascher asks the question, “twice I have wondered, what compels this woman to feed this man? Pity? Care? Compassion? Or does she simply want to rid her shop of his troublesome presence?” I carefully considered the question, which drew me to ask myself how society typically treats the homeless and helpless within a variety of situations. We certainly feel bad for them, however in those circumstances, do we always take action? Additionally, in situations where homeless presence is unwelcomed, they are often chased off in a typically demeaning manner. Ascher states, “We want to protect ourselves from an awareness of rags with voices that make no sense and scream forth in inarticulate rage,” thus demonstrating her thoughts as to why we shy away from those who so direly need our help. Ascher then provides hope. She believes that the conditions will allow for empathy to grow, and according to her, empathy is; “the mother of compassion.” Unfortunately, it could easily be argued that compassion is lacking in many ways throughout America.