Linking to IndiSpire #85
What does a woman need - equality or empathy? The question really set me thinking as it is so valid in the present day scenario. It made me think of the entire discourse surrounding womanhood. It made me think of religion and of cultural standards setup in a civilized society. And it also reminded me of the 'construction' of the female in response to an already available 'male' principle. Simone de Beauvoir, the leading French feminist, had argued in her seminal book, The Second Sex, that woman came into being only in relation to the male, and that man became the 'Absolute' while woman became the 'Other'. In her cogently argued analysis, she rightly pointed out that 'humanity is male'.
Beauvoir's point is so crucial in view of the question on equality and empathy. What is empathy? Empathy is a state of mind where one can psychologically identify with the feelings and thoughts of the other. Ronald E Riggio, in an essay on Empathy (which you can read here) describes psychologist Mark Davis's understanding of three different types of empathy -
a) Pespective-taking Emapthy - It is the ability to think of the other's feelings and to be able to understand what the other person's point of view is. It is kind of receptive and observant in nature.
b) Personal Distress Empathy - This springs from one's own pain and helps him/her identify with the other's sorrows.
c) Empathic Concern - This kind of feeling is actually the true ability to not only feel the pain of the other, but to be also able to identify with it and act upon it in order to rectify it. This is affirmative, engaged, and committed. It strives to 'perform' in a positive manner whereas the other two exist in thoughts and the second one is disabling in its nature.
An understanding of these kinds of empathy again leads us to the question of women.
As far I have understood the concept, I feel that without empathy or 'Empathic Concern', equality for women is a distant dream. Keeping in mind the idea of the 'second sex', and the lack of empathy on the part of society at large, one can clearly comprehend the state of affairs. To be able to be put on the same pedestal as men, women first need a deeper understanding of their identities and their unique selves. Only then can equality be possible. But then again even women need to feel one with their true inner beings because they too have been attuned to societal norms and expectations. When they become 'subject-effects' (and here I am reminded of Gayatri Spivak's Can the Subaltern Speak?), i.e., when they speak from a standpoint where they have modeled themselves on normative behaviors, it becomes impossible for them to advocate their cause. They too need to break free from those shackles if they want to be honest to their cause.
What do you think of my argument here?
Do share your thoughts!
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| The ability to identify one with the 'other' and becoming one with his/her pain is true Empathy. Image Source here |
What does a woman need - equality or empathy? The question really set me thinking as it is so valid in the present day scenario. It made me think of the entire discourse surrounding womanhood. It made me think of religion and of cultural standards setup in a civilized society. And it also reminded me of the 'construction' of the female in response to an already available 'male' principle. Simone de Beauvoir, the leading French feminist, had argued in her seminal book, The Second Sex, that woman came into being only in relation to the male, and that man became the 'Absolute' while woman became the 'Other'. In her cogently argued analysis, she rightly pointed out that 'humanity is male'.
Beauvoir's point is so crucial in view of the question on equality and empathy. What is empathy? Empathy is a state of mind where one can psychologically identify with the feelings and thoughts of the other. Ronald E Riggio, in an essay on Empathy (which you can read here) describes psychologist Mark Davis's understanding of three different types of empathy -
a) Pespective-taking Emapthy - It is the ability to think of the other's feelings and to be able to understand what the other person's point of view is. It is kind of receptive and observant in nature.
b) Personal Distress Empathy - This springs from one's own pain and helps him/her identify with the other's sorrows.
c) Empathic Concern - This kind of feeling is actually the true ability to not only feel the pain of the other, but to be also able to identify with it and act upon it in order to rectify it. This is affirmative, engaged, and committed. It strives to 'perform' in a positive manner whereas the other two exist in thoughts and the second one is disabling in its nature.
An understanding of these kinds of empathy again leads us to the question of women.
As far I have understood the concept, I feel that without empathy or 'Empathic Concern', equality for women is a distant dream. Keeping in mind the idea of the 'second sex', and the lack of empathy on the part of society at large, one can clearly comprehend the state of affairs. To be able to be put on the same pedestal as men, women first need a deeper understanding of their identities and their unique selves. Only then can equality be possible. But then again even women need to feel one with their true inner beings because they too have been attuned to societal norms and expectations. When they become 'subject-effects' (and here I am reminded of Gayatri Spivak's Can the Subaltern Speak?), i.e., when they speak from a standpoint where they have modeled themselves on normative behaviors, it becomes impossible for them to advocate their cause. They too need to break free from those shackles if they want to be honest to their cause.
What do you think of my argument here?
Do share your thoughts!
