Empathy

by Raoul Martinez

Our society functions by separating us from each other: almost as soon as we’re born, we are taught to divide people into groups and see some as more deserving (and more human) than others. Everything from massive inequality to war depends on this process of categorisation and dehumanisation.

In this provocative, inspiring piece of writing, Raoul Martinez asks how and why our empathy is controlled, and argues for a very different world – one of deeper understanding and indiscriminate compassion.

Genres: Philosophy, Nonfiction

60 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 29, 2016

Reviews

[H.A. Leuschel]

This is a free ebook extract from the author's book 'Creating Freedom'.
I highly recommend it to everyone! It's timely, inspiring and the insightful facts are thought-provoking. As much as empathy allows us to imagine what it is like to be in someone else's shoes and react and act on other people's behaviour through the interpretation of facial expressions for example, we are clearly also able to switch it off when we consider the person unworthy of our emphatic concern... unless we are directly placed in front of them.
I think the author makes a very good case for presenting the discrepancy between our innate capacity to feel for others and the capacity to exclude whole groups from it. There is much food for thought! It is an important topic which takes me back to Immanuel Kant's imperatives to 'treat humanity always as and end in itself and never merely as a means' and that we should 'treat others the way we would like to be treated'. Then again, there lies the fundamental problem as we seem to disagree strongly, from one country to the next, who deserves to be included in that worthy group and who doesn't.

[Tasmin]

YES!!!! Lest es. Es ist kostenlos, sehr kurz und wirklich gut.

[Martin Raybould]

Originally included as part of 'Creating Freedom', Canongate Books have gifted this free e-book extract partly to promote the complete book but also to circulate ideas that need sharing.

"Politics is applied morality" writes Martinez, although in a world full of division, injustice and cruelty there's precious little sign of this principle being applied by political leaders.

The author argues that any glimmer of hope must come from individuals rejecting the kind of dehumanization which prevents us from empathizing with the suffering of others.

[Pratistha]

This has become one of my favourite books. Sharing so much of information about issues around the world which needs a global attention and action to stop wrong actions. This kindle book has got links from which you can find more information which is quite amazing. It also tell us how we can practice empathy. One of my favourite line of this book is : in a world of division,injustice and cruelty, and empathetic response is a creative act signaling the change we want to see. It's a must read

[Furciferous Quaintrelle]

Filthy commie scum.

Tried to sell itself as a book on empathy. Turned out to be a tract on communism - and a horribly put together one at that. Contradicts itself a few times, has no real grasp on history and certainly no real understanding of human psychology. Not to mention zero grasp on economics. Total crap and a sneaky attempt to force feed the easily led, the usual Kool-Aid crapola. Capitalism ho!

[Sudhir Tirumareddy]

What I understood from the book is it mainly on the boundaries of empathy, The politics creates these boundaries/ Moral circles in which our empathy is confined to few circles. We have to erase the moral circles and show our empathy beyond that and We should be in the shoes of others , like the ones deprived and poor.

[Noele Butler]

Excellent book

I would recommend this book to damn near everyone on the planet. People are being guided to act against their natural way of being and it's destroying us and it's destroying the planet. Raoul has managed to find a beautiful way of expressing this and it couldn't be more timely and more urgent to understand it

[Adam Robertson]

While his wider philosophy can be critiqued this is a well written account of what empathy may be and how it relates us to the rest of the world.

[Yuni Amir]

A reminder