10 Years After

Black Tongue

(from Grosse Pointe Blank)

Waitress: What do you want in your omelette, sir?
Marty: Nothing in the omelette, nothing at all.
Waitress: Well, that's not technically an omelette.
Marty: Look, I don't want to get into a semantic argument, I just want the protein.

Isn't this how it goes?!
Is there really a huge differnce being being sympathetic and empathetic? I'm inclined to say that there isn't.

Empathy is defined by The American Heritage? Dictionary of the English Language as "Identification with and understanding of another's situation, feelings, and motives." It's synonymous pity. Sympathy seems a bit more complex. The American Heritage dictionary defines it as :
1.
a. A relationship or an affinity between people or things in which whatever affects one correspondingly affects the other.
b. Mutual understanding or affection arising from this relationship or affinity.

2.
a. The act or power of sharing the feelings of another.
b. A feeling or an expression of pity or sorrow for the distress of another; compassion or commiseration. Often used in the plural.

3. Harmonious agreement; accord: He is in sympathy with their beliefs.

4. A feeling of loyalty; allegiance. Often used in the plural: His sympathies lie with his family.

Definition 2b is also synonymous with pity.

Some clearity might be gained from this passage from Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, :

Usage: Sympathy, Commiseration. Sympathy is literally a fellow-feeling with others in their varied conditions of joy or of grief. This term, however, is now more commonly applied to a fellow-feeling with others under affliction, and then coincides very nearly with commiseration. In this case it is commonly followed by for; as, to feel sympathy for a friend when we see him distressed. The verb sympathize is followed by with; as, to sympathize with a friend in his distresses or enjoyments. ``Every man would be a distinct species to himself, were there no sympathy among individuals.'' --South. See Pity.

They saw, but other sight instead -- a crowd Of ugly serpents! Horror on them fell, And horrid sympathy. --Milton.


Etymology from American Heritage Dictionary:
[Latin sympathia, from Greek sumpatheia, from sumpathes, affected by like feelings : sun-, syn- + pathos, emotion; see k^went (h)- in Indo-European Roots.]

[-pathy(translation of German Einf?hlung).]


Clarity is gained when Pity is looked up. The American Heritage Dictionary has the following informative entry on putyingly (adv.) -

pity?ing?ly adv.
Synonyms: pity, compassion, commiseration, sympathy, condolence, empathy
These nouns signify kindly concern aroused by the misfortune, affliction, or suffering of another. Pity often implies a feeling of sorrow that inclines one to help or to show mercy: felt pity for the outcast. Compassion denotes deep awareness of the suffering of another and the wish to relieve it: ?Compassion is not weakness, and concern for the unfortunate is not socialism? (Hubert H. Humphrey). Commiseration signifies the expression of pity or sorrow: expressed their commiseration over the failure of the experiment. Sympathy denotes the act of or capacity for sharing in the sorrows or troubles of another: ?They had little sympathy to spare for their unfortunate enemies? (William Hickling Prescott). Condolence is a formal, conventional expression of pity, usually to relatives upon a death: extending condolences to the bereaved family. Empathy is an identification with and understanding of another's situation, feelings, and motives: Having changed schools several times as a child, I feel empathy for the transfer students.

Vizzini (the short funny assassin from The Princess Bride): You only think I guessed wrong - that's what's so funny. I switched glasses when your back was turned. Ha-ha, you fool. You fell victim to one of the classic blunders, the most famous of which is "Never get involved in a land war in Asia", but only slightly less well known is this: "Never go in against a Sicilian, when *death* is on the line.".

Apparently another classic blunder is to argue semantics with girlfriends who went to Johns Hopkins. You know why? I was wrong. There is a difference between empathy and sympathy in some sort of technical capacity. However, I don't think you have to have had a similar experience as someone else in order to either share in their misfortune or to be able to identify with and understand their troubles. Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary disagrees with my view. "Sympathy is literally fellow-feeling, and therefore requiers a certain degree of equality in situation, circumstances, etc., to its fullest exercise." However, now I'm no longer certain if I was arguing whether I was empathetic or sympathetic. . .