“Emotions are, and should be,
central to human life”(Ben-Ze’ev, A., 2000, p. 533).
Introduction:
The following is a two-part discussion relating to the nature and analyses of emotions as described by author Aaron Ben-Ze’ev in his book The Subtlety of Emotions (2000). Section I will focus on how emotions and clusters of emotions meet the criteria established by Ben-Ze’ev as a framework for understanding emotional characteristics. Section II will adopt an affect theory perspective to explore how labeling a response to stimuli with an emotional label can limit or open an individual’s experiences, expectations, or opportunities, to help shape their worldview.
Section I:
In the first three chapters of The Subtlety of Emotions, Ben-Ze'ev explores the interconnections and complexities between various pairs or clusters of emotions, and similarities and differences of how they are expressed individually or collectively. He questions whether our emotions are tied to our biological make up, are a part of our social experience, are a cognitive or psychological construct, or a combination of some or all of these. “Emotions are highly complex and subtle phenomena whose explanation requires careful and systemic analysis of their multiple characteristics and components” (Ben-Ze’ev, 2000, p. 3). Ben-Ze’ev “believe[s] that the best description of emotions have so far been provided by artists…” (2000, p. 532). Therefore, I have selected several works of art, including literature, fine arts, and visual media, to illustrate the clusters of emotions, and how they meet Ben-Ze’ev’s criteria, in the following paragraphs.
A historical example of envy and jealousy, reflecting social relationships of the time, is depicted in Shakespeare’s The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice (1622). “Envy and jealousy, the affective cornerstones of social rivalry, played no small role in the emotional universe of early modern England. Othello, of course, provides us with the most enduring example of these two emotions in action…” (Irish, 2019, p. 115). Envy and jealousy are closely related, but subtly different, negatively focused emotions. “Envy involves a negative evaluation of our undeserved inferiority, whereas jealousy involves a negative evaluation of the possibility of losing something—typically, a favorable human relationship—to someone else” (Ben-Ze’ev, 2000. p. 281). The character of Iago in this dramatic work is fraught with envious feelings towards Othello for promoting another to a position that he feels should be his. Motivated by envy, Iago plots the downfall of Othello. “O, beware, my lord, of jealousy. It is the green-eyed monster which doth mock / The meat it feeds on” (Shakespeare, 1603/2008, 3.3.169-170). Iago’s words are insincere and part of his devious plan to induce doubt in Othello’s mind that he may have reason to be jealous. Believing that his beautiful and devoted wife Desdemona has been unfaithful, Othello becomes consumed with the emotion of jealousy, with tragic results. The character of Othello is a grave illustration of the dire consequences that can derive from actions based on jealousy.
A poignant literary example of the cluster pity, compassion, and mercy is illustrated in Walter Lord’s account of the sinking of the Titanic, A Night to Remember (1955)—pity for the suffering and large-scale loss of life, compassion demonstrated in the attempts to prioritize the safety of women and children, and mercy shown by the brave men and women of boat number 14. “Of 1,600 people who went down on the Titanic, only 13 were picked up by the 18 boats that hovered nearby…only No. 14 returned to the scene” (Lord, 1955, p. 103). The mix of emotions arising from the account of this tragedy are of great intensity. “Indeed, works of art are quite successful in inducing emotions” (Ben-Ze’ev, 2000, p. 126).
Happy-for and pleasure-in-others’-misfortune are a unique cluster in that both relate to positive emotional outcomes. Watching a gripping television series, I have often experienced becoming invested in the welfare of the characters. When the character with whom I feel most connected experiences good fortune or happiness, I share in these positive emotions. The downfall of an antagonist may elicit a pleasurable response that confirms a supportive feeling for the favoured character. “A central feature of pleasure-in-others’-misfortune is the belief that the other person deserves her misfortune” (Ben-Ze’ev, 2000, p. 356). Although both emotions in this cluster can be classified as positive, there is a negative connotation to the emotion pleasure-in-others’-misfortune, in that the antagonist does not share in the pleasurable feeling.
The emotional cluster anger, hate, disgust, and contempt is illustrated in Picasso’s mural Guernica, a famous work of art depicting the evils of war (1937, as cited in Janson & Janson, 2004). Negative imagery, such as a grieving mother screaming while holding her dead baby, a soldier lying dead holding his broken sword, a suffering horse seemingly shrieking in distress, and the presence of smoke and flames all convey an overwhelming scene of suffering and destruction. “Picasso intended to represent the forces of brutality and darkness” (Janson & Janson, 2004, p. 824). The emotional relationships within this cluster overlap in the painting, demonstrating anger in the suffering of innocent women and children, hatred towards the acts of war, disgust with the intensity of suffering and loss, and contempt for the destructive power of the aggressor. Guernica communicates these emotions connected with the horrors of war.
The emotional cluster romantic love and sexual desire are depicted in Gustav Klimt’s The Kiss (1907-8, as cited in Janson & Janson, 2004). The painting depicts an intimate moment between “the artist with his lover Emilie Flöge” (Janson & Janson, 2004, p. 784). Klimt expresses his desire in the passionate embrace, whereas Emilie’s body language has a quality of ambiguity, hinting that she is longing for an enduring love, a deeper emotion than desire.
The cluster happiness and sadness is beautifully portrayed in the Amazon commercial Joy Ride (2023). A young man visits his grandma, and becomes aware of her sad demeanor. Spotting a photo of her and her husband on a motorcycle ride in their youthful days, and thinking quickly, he orders a helmet from Amazon to be rush delivered. Upon arrival, he takes his grandma for an exciting motorcycle ride. The experience transports her back to early, not-to-be-forgotten memories, while he finds joy in having made her happy. “Happiness is a way of interacting with the world that helps secure and promote our well-being” (Sizer, 2010, p. 159). The grandma’s transition from sadness to happiness illustrates how emotions can be changeable and relate to changing personal circumstances and connections.
An example of the emotions hope and fear are depicted in Al Gore’s documentary An Inconvenient Truth (2006). His calls to action in an attempt to mitigate planetary destruction, and his warnings concerning climate change related to global warming can be connected to universal hope and fear—fear that life on our planet is in grave danger, and hope that positive action to change our wasteful habits and overuse of our planet’s resources can be adopted worldwide. “We can’t afford inaction any longer…” (Gore, 2006).
The emotional cluster of pride, regret, guilt, and embarrassment, connects actions from our past or present to negative or positive emotional states. “When we evaluate our past deeds, we may experience the emotions of regret or fear; when we positively evaluate them, the emotion of pride may emerge. Our present deeds may evoke in us the emotions of embarrassment, guilt and pride” (Ben-Ze’ev, 2000, p. 491). All of the emotions in this cluster can be recognized in a complex character from Tennessee Williams’ play A Streetcar Named Desire, Blanche DuBois (1947). Blanche prides herself on identifying as a southern belle. She goes to great lengths to preserve her sense of superiority to others, based on her privileged southern heritage. Her personal relationships with other characters in the play deteriorate from her secretive and oftentimes false impressions of her previous life. Blanche regrets her responsibility in the loss of the family estate, and harbors guilt over her part in her late husband’s death. She demonstrates embarrassment and mental deterioration over the declining conditions of her life. Her evaluations of past experiences contribute to her present circumstances.
The cluster pridefulness and shame is illustrated in a portion of the Sistine Chapel’s early renaissance frescoes The Fall of Man and The Expulsion from the Garden of Eden (Michelangelo, 1508-12, as cited in Janson & Janson, 2004). Pridefulness is illustrated on the lefthand side of the image, showing Eve accepting the forbidden fruit from the serpent, just moments before she and Adam are about to eat it. Theirs is a false sense of pride, in that they are willfully disobeying God’s command. On the righthand side of the fresco, we see Adam and Eve in anguish, covering their nakedness, and displaying their shame in defying their creator. “Adam and Eve were expelled from paradise because they wanted to know more about the world” (Ben-Ze’ev, 2000, p. 532). The consequences of their actions turned Adam and Eve’s pridefulness into
shame.
Ben-Ze’ev believes that “although the concept of emotions is indeed quite general and diverse, we nevertheless can make plausible generalizations about emotions” (Ben-Ze’ev, 2000, p. 5). The artistic works above reflect Ben- Ze’ev’s four basic components of emotions (cognition, evaluation, motivation, and feeling). Although he places greatest importance on evaluation “the distinguishing nature of the evaluative component does not imply that it is the sole criterion distinguishing emotion from nonemotion” (Ben-Ze’ev, 2000, p. 78). Recognizing the value of an organized and inclusive presentation of his ideas, Ben-Ze’ev created his classification of emotions (see Figure 1, 2000, p. 94). Ben-Ze’ev intentionally sets out to create a classification scheme that is inclusive, generalized, and understandable. “The classification provides a comprehensive picture of the different emotions and indicates some important relationships among them” (Ben-Ze’ev, 2000, p. 93). Studying this framework clarifies in my mind the many characteristics of emotions and aids in my interpretations of the selected works of art, and how they connect with the emotional clusters described.
Section II:
Affect theory explores the concept of affect, an individual’s response patterns to the multiple stimuli that we are exposed to as we live our daily lives. These affects may be related to social, physiological, environmental, and other factors of which we may or may not be aware. “Critical affect theory looks at our affects to stimuli, and discusses/observes how we interpret, distinguish, and manifest responses to create boundaries and other limitations in our lives…and these affects impact our lives, our environments, and our interactions” (Marsden & Williams, 2023, p. 3).
In her essay Happy Objects, author Sara Ahmed presents an approach to examining the nature of happiness—the thoughts, feelings, and actions that we as humans experience in imagining the realization of living a happy life (2010). Ahmed presents affect as “…what sticks, or what sustains or preserves the connection between ideas, values, and objects” (2010, p. 29).
In the following discussion, the focus will shift to the applicability of affect theory on the forward-looking emotions, hope and fear. “Forward-looking emotions, such as fear and hope, focus on a future event” (Ben-Ze’ev, 2000, p. 93). We have a tendency to feel drawn to certain individuals, experiences, and objects that we perceive can contribute to the positive emotion hope. However, the opposing negative emotion, fear, is sometimes also generated. In many cases, this fear will interfere with the hope we foster. Hope and fear can be related to personal concerns, or global societal concerns. We may hope to be promoted in the workplace, and fear that if we achieve this promotion, we may experience doubts that we will succeed. Global concerns, such as global warming, can be mitigated by action. Concern that we may not meet these calls for action can generate fear. “A critical perspective here asks how this influences our lives not only personally, but as a society” (Marsden & Williams, 2023, p. 6).
In today’s world, humans are faced with an overwhelming number of stimuli on a daily basis. Responding to all of these sources of stimuli, either consciously or unconsciously, can generate a number of mixed emotions. Understanding and labeling those responses with a specific emotion, or cluster of emotions, opens an opportunity for us to make decisions based on a knowledge of how our bodies respond. “Emotional knowledge, and even labeling the emotions, usually increase our ability to regulate them. Such an increase…usually enhances our well-being” (Ben-Ze’ev, 2000, p. 533).
Conclusion:
The study of emotions is multidisciplinary in nature. In section I, I selected works from the arts and humanities to illustrate the interdisciplinary methodology to understanding emotions and emotional clusters. This understanding is derived from interpretations relating to Ben-Ze’ev’s discussions of characteristics, components, and various other criteria of emotions. In section II, I focused on the role of affect theories in attaching a name to an individual’s response to stimuli, aiding them in understanding their relationship with the world around them, and, as Ben-Ze’ev says, “…the importance of emotions to everyday life” (2000, p. 533).
References:
Ahmed, S. (2010). Happy Objects. In Gregg, M. & Seigworth, G. J. (Eds.), The Affect Theory Reader, pp. 29-51. Duke University Press.
Amazon. (2023 November 13). Joy Ride. [TV commercial].
Gore, A. (2006). An Inconvenient Truth. [Film]. Directed by Davis Guggenheim. Paramount Classics.
Irish, B. (2019). The Varieties of Early Modern Envy and Jealousy: The Case of Obtrectation. Modern Philology, Volume 117 (1), pp. 115-126. The University of Chicago Press.
Janson, H. W., and Janson, A. F. (2004). History of Art. (6th ed.). Prentice Hall.
Lord, W. (1955). A Night to Remember. Henry Holt & Company.
Marsden, R. & Williams, T. (2023). The Business of Emotions. Athabasca University.
Sizer, L. (2010). Good and Good for You: An Affect Theory of Happiness. Philosophy and Phenomenological Research, (1), pp. 133-163.
Shakespeare, W. (1602-03/2008). The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice. In S. Greenblatt et al. (Eds.), The Norton Shakespeare. (2nd ed.). W.W. Norton & Company.
Williams, T. (1947). A Streetcar Named Desire. New Directions.
Comments