The Cultivation of Humanities and Emotions. Reflections on Moral and Political Education

• Main Author: Marta Gil
• Format: Article
• Language: Spanish
• Published: Universidad Pontificia Comillas 2017-05-01
• Series: Pensamiento. Revista de Investigación e Información Filosófica
• Subjects: educación moral; educación política; imaginación empática; compasión; Martha Nussbaum; humanidades; democracia.
• Online Access: https://revistas.upcomillas.es/index.php/pensamiento/article/view/7703

The present paper involves a reflection on the current orientation that education is adopting based on Martha Nussbaum’s thinking. Under the imperative of the economic growth, education is seen as a mere means to achieve success in the job market, and arts and humanities are being marginalized from study programs increasingly. We will talk about the cultivation of empathic imagination and compassion as mechanisms that help us to understand people that are different from us, and to acquire a concern for them. We will see why the role of these emotions might be relevant in order to prompt us to help whoever that finds himself in a vulnerability situation or suffering. This is why we will argue that the cultivation of these emotions may help us to develop a better moral agency, and also to enhance our condition as citizens, making us more sensitive towards other’s necessities, and orienting our political decisions towards cooperation and solidarity.