sympathy vs empathy
Definitions
noun
- sharing the feelings of others (especially feelings of sorrow or anguish)
- an inclination to support or be loyal to or to agree with an opinion
- a relation of affinity or harmony between people; whatever affects one correspondingly affects the other
Examples
The US had once looked upon Japanese ambitions with a level of sympathy, even indulgence.
Warner wrote from Egypt expressing sympathy for their unfurnished state of affairs, but added, "I would rather fit out three houses and fill them with furniture than to fit out one 'dahabiyeh'.
We (the Western public) regard picnics as highly advantageous to health and beauty, promoting social sympathy and high-toned alimentiveness, advancing the interests of the community and the ultimate welfare of the nation.
Definitions
noun
- understanding and entering into another's feelings
Examples
Christopher is mathematically gifted, but socially incapable, finding the simplest emotional empathy unfathomable.
Furthermore, developmental psychologists found evidence that self-recognition correlates with empathy.
Another is that our empathy appears to be limited to those we identify as part of our own family or tribe.
