Nicholas Lawrence Shore

Mrs. Tamera Davis

Composition II
February 11th, 2021

No One Exists Alone

As W.H. Auden said in his poem September 1, 1939, “We must love one another, or we

must die”. Of course, it is an exaggeration. Or is it truly that distanced from reality, for if we do

not love each other who will? Our ability to understand, whether emotionally or rationally, the

plight of others is invaluable. Although, we must also understand how to empathize with

ourselves. We can cognize the skills to love ourselves; we can figure out how to love one another

and hopefully make the world a more tolerable place.

Before we start upon a discussion regarding the practice of kindness, we must examine

the ideas behind empathy. Please take a moment to consider why you empathize. Is it an

emotional reaction? Perhaps someone reasons that they must act towards others kindly, so they

are treated well. Either way, the goal of empathy is the same. We do so because it makes the

people around us happier, and therefore the world itself. As Marcus Brotherton said it potently in

his work On Being Neighborly, “When it comes to where you live, you help set the tone” (4).

Although, empathy is an exchange. When people act hatefully, it makes it immensely more

difficult to sympathize with them because I rationalize my emotional attachment, and therefore

compassion is conditional. Others, who feel their empathy, may also see their sympathy fail

when they do not associate themselves with that hateful person. Emotionally guided

understanding is how someone relates themselves to others. They also seek compassion as a

means of creating a happier environment. Therefore, they will wish for happiness themselves.

However, we extend compassion to more than just each other. What does it look like

when someone empathizes with themselves? The likely story is that it will be expressed

differently by each person. As a generalization, people empathize with themselves when they
 Nicholas Lawrence Shore
Mrs. Tamera Davis
Composition II
February 11th, 2021

view themselves in a better light. For example, one might show self-empathy by respecting their

mind and body and taking a break from something exhausting. The mentality, in turn, will make

that person more likely to give breaks to others. Essentially, it is the ability to understand our

problems that allows us to sympathize with others.

Unfortunately, many people will not even see the value in an attempt at empathy. There

will also be those who do not care. Regardless, those who do not exercise their sympathies are

still fit to receive them as we will never change their minds otherwise, and everyone is entitled to

fair and equal treatment. I used to be one of those people, and I was able to learn to reason with

empathy. I was diagnosed with an antisocial personality disorder commonly known as

sociopathy when I was eighteen, although I have been symptomatic since I was thirteen. I do not

naturally feel empathy towards anyone, but that is not to say that I cannot understand it.

Even elephants understand empathy, as laid out by Charles Foster in his opinion piece

for The Guardian If you were an elephant, “When they cover a dead human, or build a protective

wall of sticks around a wounded human, they’re showing an empathic acknowledgment of our

shared destiny that we’d do well to learn.” For me, on the other hand, it was only through the

empathy of others that I saw how beneficial it is to love one another. I still do not feel anything,

but if I can be taught empathy then it is achievable for others. The core issue is that for a societal

change we would need to see massive personality changes in a large segment of the population.

Regardless, if even a few more people can decide to practice empathy then we will still see a

difference in the lives of those around us. It only takes a few saved lives to make our effort of

loving one another worth the time and energy hundreds of times over.
 Nicholas Lawrence Shore
Mrs. Tamera Davis
Composition II
February 11th, 2021

What I am asking of us all is not a light task. So how exactly was I brought to practice

empathy? Practice makes perfect. Perhaps put in more encompassing terms – I discovered how I

sympathize by experience. Making an effort is the most critical part of any process, and

especially this one. Although, the process is expedited immensely with assistance. What anyone

can do to aid in this universal issue is to give others the benefit of the doubt, love thy neighbor,

and try to mentally walk a mile in someone else’s shoes every day. Even those with empathy will

benefit immensely from practicing because we can never genuinely have a perfect

understanding.

One of the most important aspects of life is how others view you. Although, how often do

people think about their role as the viewer? It is easy for someone to ponder what people think

about them. Much more difficult is when we think about how we affect others, as we will never

know the extent. Although with practice, determination, and patience can make most things are

possible. We not only need to learn compassion for others, but ourselves as well. We should not

wait, as time is precious. As Wystan once wrote, We need to love one another or We must die.

Works Cited

Auden, Wystan Hugh. September 1, 1939 by W. H. AUDEN - Poems | Academy of American

Poets. poets.org/poem/september-1-1939.
Brotherton, Marcus. “On Being Neighborly.” Marcus Brotherton, 23 May 2013.
Foster, Charles. “If You Were an Elephant.” The Guardian, 17 Jan. 2017,
www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/jan/19/if-you-were-an-elephant-.