A page from The Unthinkable: Who Survives When Disaster Strikes - and Why by Amanda Ripley
I guess it’s not exactly surprising, but it seems to explain a lot of things I’m witnessing in my later adulthood. I’ve always felt deeply impressed by selfless heroes, but I never really pondered the profile of heroism.
Paul Bloom has written an entire book arguing Against Empathy
I’m not sure I entirely agree with his thesis but it’s not a completely outrageous idea. I often wish I could tone down my level of empathy as well.
Reading the page, it doesn’t sound like he’s against empathy at all. He’s specifically against making decisions based on “feels” and targeting empathy specifically because he seems to believe it’s a tool often misused.
For a second I was expecting something akin to Radical Candor’s “ruinous empathy” which has been used an excuse by managers the world over to justify their inherent lack of any empathy for the people around them.
Seems like an interesting read, adding it to my list. Thanks.
I got caught up on the term ‘empathy for self.’ I haven’t read the book, but I visited the link and couldn’t get past what I felt was a tragically flawed oxymoron. But maybe that’s a flaw with the Wikipedia article and not the source material, so I’ll endeavor to seek out the book at some point to learn more.