--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Empathy is a human trait. But lots of…" description: "\"Empathy is a human trait. But lots of humans exercise some traits more energetically than others. By \"the usefulness of empathy\" I mean the way in whic..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f8/jim-shepard-20533_arguing_empathy-is-a-human-trait-but-lots-of-hum_2050918.jpg" --- # Empathy is a human trait. But lots of humans exercise some… ![“Empathy is a human trait. But lots of humans exercise some traits more energetically than others. By "the usefulness of empathy" I mean the way in which a progressive might claim that empathy is a crucial aspect of any benign political system, and the way a conservative might argue that not only…” quote by Jim Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f8/jim-shepard-20533_arguing_empathy-is-a-human-trait-but-lots-of-hum_2050918.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f8/jim-shepard-20533_arguing_empathy-is-a-human-trait-but-lots-of-hum_2050918.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f8/jim-shepard-20533_arguing_empathy-is-a-human-trait-but-lots-of-hum_2050918.jpg) > “Empathy is a human trait. But lots of humans exercise some traits more energetically than others. By "the usefulness of empathy" I mean the way in which a progressive might claim that empathy is a crucial aspect of any benign political system, and the way a conservative might argue that not only is it not necessary, but it might not even be all that helpful, in that regard.” [Jim Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-shepard/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Empathy is seen as essential for compassionate governance, yet critics argue it may hinder objective decision‑making. **In simple terms:** Empathy can help or hinder politics. Key Takeaway Consider both benefits and limits of empathy. Themes politics ethics psychology Mood reflective analytical Type philosophical political debate When to use this quote - legislative debates - community outreach - conflict resolution - leadership training Key Concepts compassion bias policy design Questions to Reflect On - When does empathy improve outcomes? - When might it cloud judgment? A Different Perspective Empathy may be overvalued, leading to emotional bias. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Arguing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/arguing/) [Aspect](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aspect/) [Benign](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/benign/) [Claims](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/claims/) [Conservative](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conservative/) [Crucial](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/crucial/) [Empathy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/empathy/) [Empathy Crucial](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/empathy-crucial-3864468/) [Empathy Human](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/empathy-human-1889256/) [Empathy Mean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/empathy-mean-2876551/) [Exercise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/exercise/) [Helpful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/helpful/) [Human Trait](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-trait-423127/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Mean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mean/) [Might](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/might/) [Political](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political/) [Political system](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political-system/) [Political systems](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political-systems/) [Progressive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/progressive/) [Regard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/regard/) [Traits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/traits/) [Usefulness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/usefulness/) [Usefulness Empathy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/usefulness-empathy-3864467/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) ## Related quotes > [I don't think conservativism is about a deficiency. I think it's about a commitment to an ideology that has to in some ways devalue…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-shepard/i-don-t-think-conservativism-is-about-a-deficiency-i-think-it-s-about/) [Jim Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-shepard/) > [“Be yourself one hundred and one thousand percent. Everybody man, from the sides to the back to the middle to the sides, you might…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brandon-mccartney/be-yourself-one-hundred-and-one-thousand-percent-everybody-man-from/) [Brandon McCartney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brandon-mccartney/) > [“When you and I feel empathy toward another being-be it human or one of our fellow creatures-it's tinged with the whiff of their eventual…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-rifkin/when-you-and-i-feel-empathy-toward-another-being-be-it-human-or-one/) [Jeremy Rifkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-rifkin/) > [“To know shame is to be human. And to have the capacity for empathy is also to be human.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bren-brown/to-know-shame-is-to-be-human-and-to-have-the-capacity-for-empathy-is/) [Brené Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bren-brown/) > [Sympathy feels like a performative word, whereas empathy is human.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-troche/sympathy-feels-like-a-performative-word-whereas-empathy-is-human/) [Rose Troche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-troche/) > [When you see around you the human form suffering or dissolving, you have empathy on the human level. You share the suffering because it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/when-you-see-around-you-the-human-form-suffering-or-dissolving-you/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [nothing is more important than empathy for another human being's suffering. Nothing. Not a career, not wealth, not intelligence, certainly not status. We have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/audrey-hepburn/nothing-is-more-important-than-empathy-for-another-human-being-s/) [Audrey Hepburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/audrey-hepburn/) > [“Revenge is a human trait, one that has been the cause of the destruction of civilisations many times over. But the goblins live on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/count-anton-dance-of-the-goblins/revenge-is-a-human-trait-one-that-has-been-the-cause-of-the/) [Count Anton Dance of the Goblins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/count-anton-dance-of-the-goblins/) > [“A core human trait is to cooperate, at the core of our economics is to compete in order to have: to have what we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-carlsson/a-core-human-trait-is-to-cooperate-at-the-core-of-our-economics-is-to/) [Steve Carlsson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-carlsson/) > [Nostalgia is a very human trait.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephanie-coontz/nostalgia-is-a-very-human-trait/) [Stephanie Coontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephanie-coontz/) > [Tis a human trait to hate one you have wronged](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/tis-a-human-trait-to-hate-one-you-have-wronged/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [ “The great obstacle to the 'struggle toward clear vision of the universal' is the human trait that Mondrian variously calls 'individuality,' 'personality'... \[p.73\]” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-lipsey/the-great-obstacle-to-the-struggle-toward-clear-vision-of-the/) [Roger Lipsey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-lipsey/) > [“The hedonic treadmill is one example of the common human trait of adaptation. Studies of human response to positive and negative events have shown…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-hedonic-treadmill-is-one-example-of-the-common-human-trait-of/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Being jealous isn't a female trait, its a human trait...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/being-jealous-isn-t-a-female-trait-its-a-human-trait/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The single most valuable human trait, the one quality every schoolchild and adult should be taught to nurture, is, quite simply, kindness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derren-brown/the-single-most-valuable-human-trait-the-one-quality-every/) [Derren Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derren-brown/) ## More by Jim Shepard > [I very much like people. I don't much like writers who don't.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-shepard/i-very-much-like-people-i-don-t-much-like-writers-who-don-t/) [Jim Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-shepard/) > [I love the box that such a decision puts you in, and I love the interest the reader has in seeing how you negotiate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-shepard/i-love-the-box-that-such-a-decision-puts-you-in-and-i-love-the/) [Jim Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-shepard/) > [I don't think conservativism is about a deficiency. I think it's about a commitment to an ideology that has to in some ways devalue…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-shepard/i-don-t-think-conservativism-is-about-a-deficiency-i-think-it-s-about/) [Jim Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-shepard/) > [What makes us threaten the things we want most?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-shepard/what-makes-us-threaten-the-things-we-want-most/) [Jim Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-shepard/) > [I do find stories - or literary fiction - an apt form for analyzing the world. And especially for trying to imagine the other.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-shepard/i-do-find-stories-or-literary-fiction-an-apt-form-for-analyzing-the/) [Jim Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-shepard/) > [Does research get in the way of the story? It certainly can. Anything can, given that as writers we're all geniuses at procrastination. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-shepard/does-research-get-in-the-way-of-the-story-it-certainly-can-anything/) [Jim Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-shepard/) > [“But what I did was the kind of thing you'd do and the kind of thing you've done: I felt bad for him and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-shepard/but-what-i-did-was-the-kind-of-thing-you-d-do-and-the-kind-of-thing/) [Jim Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-shepard/) > [I have written screenplays. Most recently for Errol Morris, who was thinking about doing his first fiction movie, and with a young director who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-shepard/i-have-written-screenplays-most-recently-for-errol-morris-who-was/) [Jim Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-shepard/) > [Class is the most taboo subject in America. The American media would rather talk about race or perversion or anything else considered taboo before…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-shepard/class-is-the-most-taboo-subject-in-america-the-american-media-would/) [Jim Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-shepard/) > [I don't beat at the details, but I do always keep in mind that anything that isn't A) moving the story forward or B)…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-shepard/i-don-t-beat-at-the-details-but-i-do-always-keep-in-mind-that/) [Jim Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-shepard/) > [“But this is the only account hand-copied and tacked to my bulletin board, the testimony of a Dutch pilot caught on shore near Anjer,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-shepard/but-this-is-the-only-account-hand-copied-and-tacked-to-my-bulletin/) [Jim Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-shepard/) > [I'm tempted to do everything. And sometimes I think, "Oh, come on. You can stick that detail somewhere."](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-shepard/i-m-tempted-to-do-everything-and-sometimes-i-think-oh-come-on-you-can/) [Jim Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-shepard/) > [I'll find something in what I read that snags my imagination in emotional terms; it resonates with me for reasons more complicated than just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-shepard/i-ll-find-something-in-what-i-read-that-snags-my-imagination-in/) [Jim Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-shepard/) > [It turns out that our intuition is a greater genius than we are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-shepard/it-turns-out-that-our-intuition-is-a-greater-genius-than-we-are/) [Jim Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-shepard/) > [“Lately it's started to seem to me that here in America our fetishization of self-reliance has taken a wrong turn and has helped enable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-shepard/lately-it-s-started-to-seem-to-me-that-here-in-america-our/) [Jim Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-shepard/) [Explore all 30 Jim Shepard quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-shepard/) ## More Arguing quotes > [I do wish you wouldn't argue with me when I'm knitting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerald-durrell/i-do-wish-you-wouldn-t-argue-with-me-when-i-m-knitting/) [Gerald Durrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerald-durrell/) > [Any comprehensive doctrine, religious or secular, can be introduced into any political argument at any time, but I argue that people who do this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-rawls/any-comprehensive-doctrine-religious-or-secular-can-be-introduced/) [John Rawls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-rawls/) > [It's fine to talk about politics with people you agree with. But it is rude to argue about politics with people you disagree with.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-lessig/it-s-fine-to-talk-about-politics-with-people-you-agree-with-but-it-is/) [Lawrence Lessig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-lessig/) > [Men are fair, and they have learned not to personalize anger - they can disagree with you and argue to the bone, but afterward…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-farrell/men-are-fair-and-they-have-learned-not-to-personalize-anger-they-can/) [Warren Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-farrell/) > [When Eudæmonidas heard a philosopher arguing that only a wise man can be a good general, "This is a wonderful speech," said he; "but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plutarch/when-eud-monidas-heard-a-philosopher-arguing-that-only-a-wise-man-can/) [Plutarch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plutarch/) > [Fasting is required, staying away from fighting and arguing and bombing of masjids is still going on. Hatred is still manifested between Sunni and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-farrakhan/fasting-is-required-staying-away-from-fighting-and-arguing-and/) [Louis Farrakhan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-farrakhan/) > [The problem for the Left, however, is that the moment it stops painting the Right as vile, it has to argue the issues.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-prager/the-problem-for-the-left-however-is-that-the-moment-it-stops-painting/) [Dennis Prager](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-prager/) > [To argue with a person who has renounced the use of reason is like administering medicine to the dead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-paine/to-argue-with-a-person-who-has-renounced-the-use-of-reason-is-like/) [Thomas Paine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-paine/) > [You can argue that the Terminator movies reboot their world each time they go back in time, but that doesn't negate the value of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hayter/you-can-argue-that-the-terminator-movies-reboot-their-world-each-time/) [David Hayter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hayter/) > [We may argue eloquently that 'Honesty is the best Policy' - unfortunately, the moment honesty is adopted for the sake of policy it mysteriously…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-l-sayers/we-may-argue-eloquently-that-honesty-is-the-best-policy-unfortunately/) [Dorothy L. Sayers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-l-sayers/) > [I'm a very serious person, but I don't take myself very seriously and I would rather laugh all day than argue.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stone-cold-steve-austin/i-m-a-very-serious-person-but-i-don-t-take-myself-very-seriously-and/) [Stone Cold Steve Austin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stone-cold-steve-austin/) > [These eyes, tho' clear To outward view of blemish or of spot, Bereft of light, their seeing have forgot, Nor to their idle orbs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-milton/these-eyes-tho-clear-to-outward-view-of-blemish-or-of-spot-bereft-of/) [John Milton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-milton/) > [There's crucial distinction that has to be drawn between the Shari'a, which is this hugely expansive vision of cosmic order that I've been describing,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sadakat-kadri/there-s-crucial-distinction-that-has-to-be-drawn-between-the-shari-a/) [Sadakat Kadri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sadakat-kadri/) > [Only fools argue whether to eat meat or not. They don't understand truth nor do they meditate on it. Who can define what is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guru-nanak/only-fools-argue-whether-to-eat-meat-or-not-they-don-t-understand/) [Guru Nanak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guru-nanak/) > [The surest sign that you haven't any sense is to argue with one who hasn't.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurence-j-peter/the-surest-sign-that-you-haven-t-any-sense-is-to-argue-with-one-who/) [Laurence J. Peter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurence-j-peter/) [Browse all 1,908 Arguing quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/arguing/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Empathy is a human trait. But lots of humans exercise some traits more energetically than others. 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