Animal Poetry and Empathy

Tirza Brüggemann

doi:10.3390/h6020018

Abstract

This article discusses how our ideas of empathy are influenced by the dichotomy of mind versus body, also known as Cartesian dualism. Within the aesthetic field, this dichotomy is seen when researchers define narrative empathy as imaginatively reconstructing the fictional character’s thoughts and feelings. Conversely, the empathy aroused by a non-narrative work of art is seen as an unconscious bodily mirroring of movements, postures or moods. Thinking dualistically does not only have consequences for what we consider human nature; it also affects our view on animals. To show the untenability of dualistic thinking, this article focuses on the animal poetry genre. Using the ideas of the French phenomenologist Maurice Merleau-Ponty, I analyze two animal poems: “Inventing a Horse” by Meghan O’Rourke and “Spermaceti” by Les Murray. The analysis of these two poems suggests that the presiding ideas about aesthetic empathy and empathy in general need re-evaluation.

Highlights

For anyone interested in empathy research, the many definitions of the concept, the sometimes contradictory ways in which distinctions are made between forms of empathy, and the variety of fields and subjects in which the idea of empathy appears can be discouraging
Researchers even differ in opinion on whether they should strive at a unifying theory on what empathy entails or not
The psychologist Stephanie Preston and the biologist Frans de Waal favour a ‘unified story’, whereas the psychologist Amy Coplan maintains that the different definitions of empathy refer to different phenomena

Summary

Introduction

For anyone interested in empathy research, the many definitions of the concept, the sometimes contradictory ways in which distinctions are made between forms of empathy, and the variety of fields and subjects in which the idea of empathy appears can be discouraging. What these poems demonstrate is important in the literary field, but it affects the empathy debate in general. Endorsing his position, I will argue that dividing low-level mirroring from high-level empathy is based on the Cartesian dualistic conviction that there is a strict division between the mind (Descartes’ res cogitans) and the body (Descartes’ res extensa). I will return to the work of Merleau-Ponty His critique of Descartes and his search for a monistic view on human nature is a fruitful way to approach animal poems. I will discuss two animal poems, Meghan O’Rourke’s: “Inventing A Horse” and Les Murray’s, “Spermaceti” The analysis of these two poems suggests that the presiding ideas about aesthetic empathy and empathy in general need re-evaluation

High-Level Empathy versus Low-Level Mirroring

Objections to the Distinction between High and Low Level

Cartesian Dualism in the Aesthetic Field

Leaving Cartesian Dualism behind