Empathy - the ability to understand and share the feelings of another.
I believe that this is an issue, because people feel they understand and share the same feelings, without actually knowing it. It is a massive assumption.
Maybe you need empathy to feel compassion?
I don't believe so. Compassion doesn't require anything shared. You can have compassion for the suffering of an animal, but you cannot understand and share the feelings of an animal.
I think my definitions are the same, it is just that people don't understand the definitions, because they make the assumption that their feelings are correct. For instance, it is unlikely you can understand and share the feelings of someone who is in conditions that are very different to you. For instance, a poor black person in a slum in Johannesburg. So you can't have empathy, but you could still have compassion for them. Empathy requires familiarity, compassion does not.
But look at the definition though - "the ability to understand and share the feelings of another" - it's not the ability to replicate the exact feeling of another - it's the ability to understand.
I can have empathy for a person completely different to me, I do have empathy for people different to me. I can't know the exact feeling of a poor black person in a slum, but I can understand their general feeling of insecurity, fear, hunger, etc because I've felt variations of those myself.
It doesn't need to be the exact same... empathy is just the ability to understand and share.
I can understand an animal being hungry (empathy), and compassionately feed it (compassion).
Honestly, I think without empathy, the world would be an empty place. I don't think we could feel joy, excitement or sadness while watching a movie or listening to music or reading a book.
The definition of empathy doesn't say anything about it requiring familiarity.
I guess I don't really understand why you care about this so much... you've written about it at least 4 times that I remember, why do you care if people feel empathy and/or compassion? Surely it's better than people not feeling or doing anything right?
Even if you could convince me that compassion is better than empathy, it's not like I could turn it off. You either feel it or you don't. You can't fake it.
The edit came after I replied, so will comment again :D
No, but you can manage it. Feelings are feelings, they come and go like clouds, but it doesn't mean they are valid or appropriate for the situations. Feeling sad or depressed doesn't mean that nothing else can be done but wallow. Feeling happy doesn't mean one can't help another in pain. But, if we don't learn how to manage our emotions, we become victims of them, reactive to them, regardless of the damage it causes ourselves and others. Just because sometimes I feel like punching a wall, it doesn't mean I do it.
No - but you can fake showing it, right? It is possible to feel one way, and act another.