The opening of Jeremy Rifkin’s The Empathic Civilization stirs an existential question about free will and empathy. Rifkin state that “the empathic predisposition is embedded in our biology.” He continues to discuss the discovery of “empathy neurons” and how biologists argue that humans naturally seek empathic relationships with other animals. Furthermore, educators believe that empathic social interaction is necessary to a child’s development. This implies that humans are unique in regards to empathy. All of these theories lead one to question if empathy is just a trait that is past down due to natural selection, then are we really choosing it? Is it simply an evolutionary advantage to show kindness to our fellow human?
But this is cynical thinking.
Even if we were not in control of our empathetic tendencies, that is not necessarily a bad thing. Having a race on Earth that strives for compassion, understanding, and connection is a gift.
While there have been periods of war, bigotry, and selfishness, humanity tends to correct itself and recognize its mistakes. We revere revolutionaries like Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Harvey Milk. We are aware when history begins to echo itself and try to avoid the same mistakes. Overall, we are moving in a direction of empathy despite challenges throughout the past and present. The belief in an empathetic human race drags us out of a cynical, existential crisis. Empathy gives us hope. While human beings maybe the greatest force on the Earth, we are driven by compassion. There is a chance that we will not destroy the planet; generosity will conquer greed and compassion will conquer apathy. As Rifkin wrote, “The underlying dialect of human history is the continuous feedback loop between expanding empathy and increasing entropy.”