Steve James’ documentary Life Itself looks at the life of critic Roger Ebert, both before and after the profound physical changes that led to his rebirth online.
There’s a moment in the documentary in which we hear one of Ebert’s great descriptions of film as “a machine that generates empathy.”
Presumably, from Life Itself, he would have hoped for something that might generate empathy – not pity and not hushed admiration, but empathy.
All this worries Sherry Turkle, a very prominent and popular analyst of computerish things, for a number of reasons. One of them is that this involvement in interconnection on a social media level somewhat paradoxically means that young people ar…
The arts are increasingly acknowledged as a key force in developing the capacity for human connection.The role of art is often seen as something that must disturb and provoke but the arts also have a much gentler role: the evoking of empathy….
Developing self-compassion offers far-reaching benefits. 1) For instance, you might think that taking a stern approach with yourself about your smoking habit would help to achieve your aim. However, a recent study revealed that smokers …
In our high-powered, win-at-all-costs business environment, the word “empathy” often evokes derision and scorn. Who has time to be a squishy, touchy-feely wimp overflowing with empathy? We’re all busy closing deals and kicking butt!Kicking, closing, et…
