Commonly, empathy can be described as stepping into someone else’s shoes or seeing through their eyes. It is an ability to value and know what another individual may be experiencing or feeling. Psychologists call empathy a “pro-social” behavior. It is essential in building close relationships and maintaining friendships. Sadly, many people lack the skill to emphasize due to childhood trauma, detachment from others, autism, brain damage or other reasoning. The ability may not be present, although, it can be taught through example and practice. Individuals may find it hard to emphasize with anyone and in most cases empathy is impossible; “We all see the world through a different lens, experience life differently based on our prior cultural and
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If empathy was not a part of everyday life, many people would not be able to bare the cruelty and harshness that the world would behold. Empathy facilitates connections and interactions, which are essential in an environment. It is the identification with another as ourselves, and without this, more sexism, racism, ageism and judgment would result in more hatred, chaos, and violence on the planet. When imagining your life as someone else’s, you can almost feel their emotions and understand their perspective. Christopher, in the novel, “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time”, he has trouble understanding others. He cannot empathize because he cannot image how others may feel or what they may be thinking. An example of this is his misunderstanding of metaphors due to not knowing what the meaning is or when people use non-verbal communication (The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, Mark Haddon, 2002, Pg. 16, Chapter 26). He also has a hard time depicting how someone is feeling (The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, Mark Haddon, 2002, Pg. 4 & 5, Chapter 3). With more social interaction, Christopher will develop the ability to socialize and understand more of human
If empathy was not a part of everyday life, many people would not be able to bare the cruelty and harshness that the world would behold. Empathy facilitates connections and interactions, which are essential in an environment. It is the identification with another as ourselves, and without this, more sexism, racism, ageism and judgment would result in more hatred, chaos, and violence on the planet. When imagining your life as someone else’s, you can almost feel their emotions and understand their perspective. Christopher, in the novel, “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time”, he has trouble understanding others. He cannot empathize because he cannot image how others may feel or what they may be thinking. An example of this is his misunderstanding of metaphors due to not knowing what the meaning is or when people use non-verbal communication (The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, Mark Haddon, 2002, Pg. 16, Chapter 26). He also has a hard time depicting how someone is feeling (The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, Mark Haddon, 2002, Pg. 4 & 5, Chapter 3). With more social interaction, Christopher will develop the ability to socialize and understand more of human