Against empathy : the case for rational compassion / Paul Bloom.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Bloom, Paul, 1963- author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Empathy.

Caring.

PSYCHOLOGY / Social Psychology.

SOCIAL SCIENCE / Sociology.

Local Subjects:

Caring.

PSYCHOLOGY / Social Psychology.

SOCIAL SCIENCE / Sociology.

Physical Description:

285 pages ; 22 cm

Edition:

First edition.

Place of Publication:

New York, NY : Ecco, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, [2016]

Summary:

"We often think of our capacity to experience the suffering of others as the ultimate source of goodness. Many of our wisest policy-makers, activists, scientists, and philosophers agree that the only problem with empathy is that we don't have enough of it. Nothing could be farther from the truth, argues Yale researcher Paul Bloom. In [this book], Bloom [posits that] empathy [is] one of the leading motivators of inequality and immorality in society. Far from helping us to improve the lives of others, empathy is a capricious and irrational emotion that appeals to our narrow prejudices"--Dust jacket flap.

Contents:

Other people's shoes

The anatomy of empathy

Doing good

The politics of empathy

Intimacy

Empathy as the foundation of morality

Violence and cruelty

Age of reason.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 247-272) and index.

ISBN:

9780062339331 :

0062339338

OCLC:

964448730