Before writing my response, I asked a classmate if he would rather choose to be able to use only reason and logic and not have any emotions, or not have reason but have emotions and everything that come with that. He initially sided with removing his emotions if he had to choose. I then asked him to justify his claim and his response was: "You can't make any rational decisions based on emotions. You can't come up with logical solutions to problems." If this was the case than, I too would abandon my emotions. After listening to his justification, I followed up with a question of my own, "Why are we friends?" Although this question seems random without any correlation to his argument, it calls for both emotion and reason to formulate a response. The fact is that without emotions, we would be unable to have simple friendships or relationships. This is because the basis of our reason and thinking is heavily dependent on our emotions. Without emotions our thinking and ability to apply reason is highly limited. In my opinion, this is because emotions are what make us human and not indifferent robots so to speak. Why we decide to follow a certain path of logic in order to make a decision is based on what outcome will be best for us or will make us feel more content. Yes, it is possible to disregard emotions and just use reason as can be seen in solving math problems, but the majority of our problems fall along the continuum of emotion and reason. Because not every problem does not have a definite right or wrong answer, emotion plays its part in guiding our reasoning. Life as we know it would have no purpose without emotions. As exceedingly advanced organisms that strive to find pleasures in life, a life without emotion is unthinkable. Our quest to achieve everlasting happiness and pleasures is the underlying force of why we do what we do. Our intuitions, ethics, and morals all stem from our emotions which in turn act as a filter in how we perceive the world around us.
Emotion involves both mind and body rather than just cognitive processes, like reason. This relates to the Marshmallow Test.
In the test, children were asked to sit in front of one marshmallow for several minutes and told that if they could wait for a few minutes they would receive a second marshmallow. This experiment is a prime example of how powerful an influence the slightest idea of happiness has upon our decisions. Those children who were able to wait the time are those who were able to repress their emotions to delay gratification. This skill is essential in life simply because emotions may become too powerful. If all our decisions were made based on our emotions there would be no order. When looking at the extremes of negative emotions such as being enraged or furious, acting according to these feelings will result in destruction. Self-control and the ability to tame one's impulses is key to order.
"Conquer your passions and you conquer the world." -- Hindu Proverb
What would you guys choose if you had to? Only emotion or only reason? Justify your answer if you'd like.
In the test, children were asked to sit in front of one marshmallow for several minutes and told that if they could wait for a few minutes they would receive a second marshmallow. This experiment is a prime example of how powerful an influence the slightest idea of happiness has upon our decisions. Those children who were able to wait the time are those who were able to repress their emotions to delay gratification. This skill is essential in life simply because emotions may become too powerful. If all our decisions were made based on our emotions there would be no order. When looking at the extremes of negative emotions such as being enraged or furious, acting according to these feelings will result in destruction. Self-control and the ability to tame one's impulses is key to order.
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ReplyDeleteAdam, your post made me realize what big of a role our emotions play in our daily life. The question addressed to your friend: "Are we friends?" seems very random, however it is something we should think about more often. Why are we friends with people we are friends with ? Does it have to do with how we feel towards them or is it based on how our friend is ? It is true that our emotions are what make us like a person or hate them. However, relying only on our emotions can sometimes harm us. Even if it is hard to control our feelings, we shouldn't let our emotions control us. You might like someone a lot, and think of him/her as one of your closest friends, but the truth is that person is not a good friend. Would you stop being friends with that person or would ignore the fact that they are not being a good friend and continue to consider that person as your friend. This is the part where peoples’ decisions will differ based on their emotional intelligence. Either decision will not be easy to handle. There will always be that part of us that is attached to that person. However, it will be easier for someone who decides to confront the situation and deal with it right away than for someone who ignores it. This is because, the longer we make ourselves believe that a certain person is one of our closest friends, the harder it will be to stop believing that they are our friend once we are faced with the reality. All the moments shared together and memories will not be erased directly from our memory. In fact, thinking back about them will only make us even more disappointed and hurt. On the other hand, someone who decides to stop living in illusion will have more time to get over the fact that that certain person was never a good friend. How would you act if you were in a similar situation ?
ReplyDeleteZainab, you should start an agony column! Seriously though, the handling of friendships and relationships is crucial to our sense of well-being - from when we are very small and bicker then make up with friends in the school-yard - to when we grow old and fear loneliness and abandonment… Even my cats (I have four) have complicated relationships - jealousies, anxiety issues, cravings for affection, fights.. In general though, I agree that it is always better to 'speak' your feelings. Often, you can sort out differences through an exchange - a good talk. At least then, you have a chance to resolve your differences.
ReplyDeleteAdam, I think that you made a very good point. The 'why are we friends?' question made me think that one would rather live with reason than with emotion. This is because in order to become friends, people first meet and base their knowledge on how that person is on reason. So, reason is first to play a role in a friendship. Moreover, when friends quarrel with each other, I think that they are more likely to become friends again. This is because when they were quarreling, the emotional side is playing a role in their bodies. However, after thinking about the quarrel that they've experienced, they might reconsider becoming friends again due to their reasoning that they have shared many memories together and that it would be stupid to separate from each other because of a little dispute. Reason, in my opinion, is the best way to make rational decisions.
ReplyDeleteConsidering that I was the "friend" that you spoke to, I am absolutely shocked that you would actually question our friendship. Moving on, you had asked me to justify both reason over emotion and vice versa. Much of what I told you, you were able to express much more fluently and concisely than I did when we spoke. I had a few arguments for each, but I am a firm advocate of emotion over reason, so here it goes. I said that if we only use reason and try to act in a completely logical manner then many of the small pleasures in life are removed and there is no space for error. The amount of passions that we can follow, only those that align with our reasonable thinking. By using only reason to conduct our lives we are cornered to little choice as what to do, little risk taking and especially little to no emotional connection with our fellow humans, which deep down is what we all want. To find a partner one would have to look at him/her reasonably and assess their genetic background, position, health etc ONLY. While of course we all know that much to finding a significant other than that, of course position etc are important things but the emotional aspect of a relationship is paramount for it to be fruitful and successful. These are just some problems among many that I am sure can be thought of but have not come to my mind. I see one major problem with someone living their life 100% based on reason. It is the main problem with reason, reason is subjective and based on our emotions. It is based on what makes sense, to us. What makes sense to us is what makes us feel good and no what makes us feel bad. The main advocates for reason state that reason examines every aspect of an occurrence in an objective and analytical manner, while it is exactly the opposite. One cannot have reason without emotion. If one were to live life solely based on emotion they would be very happy and very sad most of the time (of course other emotions and feelings as well). One cannot approach every single problem with emotion especially because some happenings hit some people harder emotionally than others, and so not everyone would understand. I give an example, I am an avid fan of football (the real one played with feet), I have a burning passion and love for football and spend most of my time, reading about it, thinking about it, watching it and playing it. I cannot go up to someone who does not feel the same way as I do towards football and rant to them about the match last night simply because they do not have as strong of an emotional connection to football as I do. The same goes for the opposite, if someone came up to and started talking to me about Japanese Anime or Doctor Who I would be immediately uninterested and feel no emotional appeal or connection towards the topic. My father once told me: "Never make a decision when you're angry, never make a promise when you're happy". This is the perfect example of how reason and emotion go hand in hand, and how both are needed to go about life in a proper manner yet be able to enjoy the pleasures that it gives us. Overall, that is nothing no one did not know, which is why most people use a balanced combination of both reason and emotion to carry out their life, and the emotional outbursts are usually uncommon yet when they occur are treated with reason. I would just like to say that I am disappointed in you Adam for doubting and questioning our friendship. That wasn't cool, but I still love you.
ReplyDeleteAdam, I fully agree with your point. I too believe that emotions are as significant when making a decision and establishing relationships with others as reason. However, I do still agree with the philosophy that Greek philosophers such as Plato introduced to us. Our emotiones can also be cosidered flaws, since they drive us to make decisions that we can't possibly explain using reason. For instance, let's use the example that you proposed in your post. The "Why are we friends?" question is an example on how our emotions drive us to take decisions that we can not explain without using the word "emotion" or "intuition". These factors are the ones that can determine the value of a relationship and, in this case, can be dreadful. Imagine if you became friends with someone who has an alcohol addiction, and everybody else would ask "Why do you even like him?". The answer to this can be because you want to help him. Nevertheless, other people's opinions on you will be affected negatively and this would also reflect poorly on your friendship with certain people. Another example is if a friend of yours suddenly reveals that he is homosexual. How would you feel about this? Your feelings and emotions about this person would change completely. Suddenly realizing that you have at some point in your life slept over at his house or viceversa and that you have slept in the same room as him. This would most certainly change your opinion of him and your relationship would be at stake. Do you truly believe that emotions do not play a more important role in your relationship than reason?
ReplyDeleteAdam, I will be honest. Your post has successfully convinced me on the true importance of emotion. Prior to reading your post, I believed that reason could exist without emotion, and that a world without emotion would be a better and more efficient world. However, I know realize that emotion and reason are inseparable. This realization derives from your description of our purpose in life. Although reason enables us to reach a logical conclusion, it would be useless if it doesn't further us in our quest for happiness. If we were machines, reason would be the mechanics and the inner-workings, and emotion would be the fuel. There is one question that reason cannot provide an answer for, and that is "Why ....". Without the help of emotion, this answer could never be achieved. A computer is a prime example of this crisis. Programmed with codes and algorithms, it runs solely on logical processes, however it is unable to function without the aid of a human being, a superior being with the ability to express emotions. This pertains to the question: "Would you rather be happy but lack intellect, or unhappy and intelligent?". Most individuals would prefer to be happy, and that expresses our desire of emotion over reason.
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