On empathy.

     So as a part of the mediated cultures class we took a view at this video. The big point of this clip being that humans are innately empathic and that this empathy has expanded to larger groups throughout human history. As children grow they realize that life is vulnerable and feel that plight in others. Essentially, "Empathy is grounded in the acknowledgment of death and the celebration of life. It's based on our frailties and out insecurities." So his question is if we are capable of extending our empathic abilities to the entire world. Over the course of history, the empathy of communities expanded, each step extending the "family" of people we associate with. After discussing all people come from two genetic sources and how we should all get along, he comments that our truly empathic nature is repressed by our upbringing, our education etc. which, to me, says our own cultures.
     I find it difficult to see this empathic nature as repressed by other negative aspects of our society. I may perhaps accept, 'at odds with,' or 'separate from,' but not repressed. It has always bugged me when people attempt to pin down human nature to one specific aspect of human behavior. Human nature is very complex, and is more often than not found to be differently defined by every person who thinks about it. The question still remains open as to whether or not man (in the sense of humankind) is inherently good or evil. Hang empathic or greedy or kind or frightened or a virus.
     But, putting this all aside, let us assume that humans are, in fact, empathic creatures. Why do humans have empathy and how do they gain from it. When a child is growing, as is stated in the formerly linked clip, it comes to it's own personal realization that life is fragile and death, while undesirable, is inevitable. But, rather than passively accept this and simply realize and feel sorry that life is like this for all things, I choose to believe that humans take a more active approach. I think humans try to fight for life. Of course, there are different ways of fighting for one's life from destroying everything else that could harm you to incorporating it all into your state of being... regardless, one can not easily survive alone. This is where I'm well disposed to place the importance of empathy -> that desire to help others get through life so that they may help you through life.
     When looking at empathy this way, the progress of creating larger groups is a response to new types of media. Each new media grants many more opportunities for communication and identity building that allow a sufficient and independent community to form. Now, while it might be nice to think that such communities could grow to encompass the entire planet, there are obstacles -> human ones. While humanity is building larger and larger support communities, it is also excluding many many people from these support communities. Think of it as a struggle for finite resources, and we sure have our share of those. You have a community that is vying for a sustainable existence, but across the river, or whatever, you have another community vying for the same thing. Now, if there is not enough available to support both communities to the level of comfort or ease or simply in survival they wish to exist at, there will be conflict over the region. While you have built your support off of your community and therefore see them as an extension of yourself, another community can easily be placed in the category of 'the other.'
     They are not you or an extension of you and therefore are not necessary and even a hindrance to your survival or desires or what have you. Humans are actually very good at finding reasons to place others in the category of 'other,' and it is even occasionally useful to overlook many of those reasons, but the concept of the 'other' still looms as a threat. The expansion of communities is as much a product of the influences of new media as a response and defense to the growing threat of other communities. In order for the world to come together as a community, there would have to be an 'other' created that was not of earth, or not physical. So, excluding the possibility of convenient alien contact, we have to rely on people getting behind a unified idea. The problem with culture is that it makes a nice breeding ground for the creation of many separate and often conflicting ideas. Perhaps globalization is the key, but in order to globalize, there would need to be a need to come together. It becomes a closed circular loop of necessity. As it is conceivable, it is therefore possible to overcome the barriers of this loop, but this author is cynical.

     Thinking about all of this, however, got me thinking back to this project I'm doing on maps and how they mediate us. The big idea behind this being that maps represent and impose boundaries and these boundaries are arbitrary. When thinking about the concept of 'the other,' I found that it fit perfectly within the framework of borders. To go back to the Cold War model, The Iron Curtain was mapped and outlined a clear border between Us and Them -> a clear case of 'the other.' In contrast to this, however, is the Berlin Wall and it's separation of those who did not consider each other 'the other,' but were forced to be such. This wall was, however, torn down. It was even done so to the ring of much fanfare and celebration. The Cold War, too, came to an agreed end, but this never settled the big problem. Borders, and the idea of the other that they support, still exist. Even after Germany was unified once again, it was still Germany as distinct from France, etc. Lines continue to cross the continents and each separates people from people. Now, I can't advocate for the removal of maps as a tool, but we need to be aware of the effect they can have on the way we perceive the world.

So for project direction, I need to shore up and solidify my big ideas, and begin to do some more research on the specifics of the Cold War and Berlin as well find some more ties between maps and their influence on imposing borders. Suggestions welcome.