Hello everyone!
I started a new YouTube channel.
I’m gonna stick with Edith Stein’s empathy as the topic. Then, I might widen the scope in the future.
I already uploaded three videos. Please watch, like, share and subscribe. Thanks! 🙂
I’m also gonna post my succeeding videos here on my blog.
The Toulmin method is a tool for creating a good argument and analyzing other’s argument. We will know the connections the author makes to get to his or her point.
Through this deconstructing method, we will have a clearer picture of the author’s flow of argument.
This will be a good tool for my thesis.
The Toulmin method has, generally, six (6) elements.
The claim is what the author fights for. It is his or her stand or position on a subject matter. The grounds are the various data to support the claim. The warrant is the connection of the grounds to the claim. The backing is the support for the warrant. The qualifier puts certain limitations or conditions on the warrant. The rebuttal is a set of counter-data (i.e., which are against the author’s claim) that the author acknowledges to be valid.
I claim that all people are inherently good. My ground is that people help each other in times of crisis. My warrant is that being helpful is a trait of goodness. My backing for the warrant is that helpfulness motivates other people to help others also.
Now, as a qualifier for my warrant, there may be circumstances where being helpful is undesirable. And a rebuttal for my claim could be that people are capable of evil actions, actions that are done deliberately with no remorse.
Due to the worldwide outbreak of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by SARS-CoV-2, I am one with those who believe that it is prudent for workers to be at home for safety. All may continue working, but at home. Kudos to those companies who support the “work from home” policy.
Let us continue to hope and pray that our scientists and doctors, with the leadership of the World Health Organization (WHO), will be able to contain the virus contagion and develop a cure or vaccine as soon as possible.
Where I work, the school implemented a “work from home” policy just a few days ago. It was forced to do so due to a directive from the city government to all schools because the country has rising cases of COVID-19. As to now, where I live, there is a province-wide community quarantine to prevent further transmission of the virus SARS-CoV-2.
Since I would be working from home, I decided to use Google Classroom for my classes. It is an option encouraged by the school. All classes would be online-based. So far, so good, but with issues here and there. Issues are to be expected, of course, given that I was not trained for online teaching, and so were the students. I am still learning as to what really works. Some students like the new online-based classes, but some do not.
As expected, some students are complaining about the new setup of the school. They are voicing out their opinion on social media. They point out the difficulty of online-based classes, and also of the limited availability of the internet access.
But I told some of them that classes need to continue, and the teachers, together with the school, are doing their best to have a good transition from face-to-face class setting to online-based class setting. It is not as if we all want this to happen. We are just forced to work some things out given the disease outbreak.
I think that all of my online classes are well set. I utilize calendar blocking for class preparation. And so far, the new setup has not adversely affected my thesis reading and writing.
May all those tasked in developing the cure be given wisdom.
May all the doctors, nurses, and the medical staff be given a healing hand.
May all people cooperate for safety and security.
May all those infected with the virus have a strong will to live.
May all those who are not infected keep themselves safe.
May God bless us all!
St. Edith Stein, pray for us.
It’s better late than never!
Since last week, I have been implementing calendar blocking, so as to maximize the studying time I have each day. I was inspired to get my life in order and finish my master’s (Jordan Peterson, you rock!). I researched about time management techniques on YouTube, until I clicked on some block scheduling (or calendar blocking) videos.
Yeah, I know. I know. It’s common sense. I should have done this eons ago. But, hey, I’m not perfect and like most people, I’m the kind of person that needs push and inspiration to do certain tasks. So, again, better late than never. And it’s not like this is my first time implementing time management techniques.
The great thing about calendar blocking is the ability to block out times for certain themes. Instead of scheduling a multitude of tasks, for example, they will just be combined into a single category, then I block out a time for it.
Now, to the fun part.
What I did was to block out some portions of my time each day. As you can see from the photo, I implemented a morning block. The time starts when my alarm rings. It is when I do my morning prayer (meditation), have a breakfast, and do other menial things.
At 8:00 am, on Mondays to Saturdays, I go to my room and immerse myself for my thesis. I call it Master’s Thesis block. It is all about my thesis (reading, writing, researching, etc.). All in all, I allotted four and a half hours to five and a half hours each day (Mondays to Fridays) for my thesis. On Saturdays, I allotted only two hours for it.
I also have block times for class preparation, spiritual reading and general reading. Break times, which I named Enjoy!, are also included, of course.
I designed my block schedule to be uniform as much as possible. On Sundays, because of teaching work, my blocks are obviously different. Scheduling for it is primarily subject-based.
I hope that I will be faithful in following the schedule I set for myself. My block schedule is still a work in progress, as I try to experiment on the best block times and themes.
P.S. I also applied other time management techniques. The Pomodoro technique and the Eisenhower Matrix come to mind.
“You must have a matrix of categories.” This is what my mentor told me when we met last Saturday.
Despite that we met an hour later than agreed because of miscommunication, at least I gained some insights from my mentor’s guidance. He asked for my progress, so I let him see the mind map I created, the “bits and pieces” of meanings of Edith Stein’s empathy, and the articles I already read and will have to read. I also told him that I was focused on re-reading Edith Stein’s On the Problem of Empathy.
He asked for clarification of terms. I satisfactorily answered some, but he rebuked me for my understanding of the other terms. He said that there are a lot of nuances carried by those terms. So, he strictly advised me to be exact in my understanding of those terms because Edith Stein used or understood those terms in a specific sense. For example, Edith Stein uses the word “perception,” but there is not one specific meaning for this term, for philosophers use this term in different senses. So, I must be exact by what Edith Stein means by perception when referring to empathy. Overall, then, I gained excellent guidance from my mentor.
For our next meeting, which is probably this Saturday, he said that I should present to him a matrix of categories. This is so that I will know exactly how empathy is to be understood in Steinian sense. For instance, because empathy is understood as a “cognition,” I must understand what exactly is cognition in Steinian sense, and what are its types. After knowing the meaning of cognition, I must know the similarities and dissimilarities of its types. Then, I must see where Edith Stein would put empathy on the categories (e.g., that empathy is a “sui generis” perception). My mentor told me to go on with this matrix, until I get a broad picture of what Edith Stein exactly means by empathy.
Time to read now!
Just a few minutes ago, I emailed my mentor a summary of what I have understood so far in my readings. Below is the content of the doc file I attached in the email. I will now await for his comments, insights and corrections.
Sir, so far, this is the summary of what I have read and understood in my readings. I have written in words what I have made in a mind map.
Empathy is an experience of another person’s experience. So, it is first of all an experience. Indeed it is a primordial experience (coming from the “I”) of a non-primordial experience.
Is the experience here a cognition or affection? The primordial experience is a cognition, rather than affection.
If it is a cognition, is the experience an imagination, contagion, simulation, inference, or a perception? Experience is a perception.
If it is a perception, is the experience an outer perception, inner perception, or a different kind of perception? Experience is a sui generis kind of perception. This means that what is perceived by the primordial experience is not physical, but rather the emotional states of another person.
Empathy thus has its object the emotional states of another person. In other words, what is being perceived are feelings. These feelings are non-primordial in nature since they are not mine, but rather the other person’s.
Feelings have four dimensions. These are depth, reach, duration, and intensity. In depth, there are five different kinds of feelings of the other person. These are sensual feelings, general feelings, moods, spiritual feelings, and sentiments.
Only the spiritual feelings (emotions) and sentiments disclose the value systems of the other person. Spiritual feelings disclose world values, while sentiments disclose personal values.
Empathy has three levels. First level is called awareness, where I see or apprehend the person before me. This is done through the senses. The second level is called focus, where I am moved to follow the person’s emotional experience. And the third level is called comprehension, where I have a relatively complete understanding of the person’s emotional experience. Empathy, though, doesn’t have to include the three levels. I may stop on the first or second level, due to various circumstances (e.g. apathy on my part, busyness, or the other person doesn’t want to be disturbed).
Empathy has two types. The first type is sensual. The second type is emotional. Empathy always starts in the sensual type, grasping the other person’s body language. Emotional empathy may happen when I have reached the third level of empathy. The third level of empathy is said to be a springboard for emotional empathy.
I will have to read again and read more, sir. I might have misunderstood some of the concepts. I haven’t dwelt into detail the meaning of emotional empathy, the four dimensions of feelings and the kinds of feelings. I have to read about values and their connection to feelings and empathy, in general.
Finally, I’m enrolled for my thesis! This is the beginning of the end (Get the pun? Never mind. Just smile.).
Thankfully, the Finance department allowed me to pay less than the stated down payment. How could I pay it fully when the amount was huge! I didn’t have enough money for the amount. The secretary of the Philosophy department was even shocked. Just imagine that fully paying the down payment would mean settling 80% of my balance. She explained to me, though, that it’s because of Thesis Direction. Thankfully, Finance was considerate.
I’m also grateful because I was able to meet with my mentor. We talked for two hours. He presented and explained to me a thesis book to let me see how a thesis is formed.
His advice to me is, for now, to read and explore the different concepts involved in Edith Stein’s empathy. He strongly suggested that I begin with the basic questions of “What is empathy?” and “What is a value?” He also reminded me to focus only on Edith Stein’s understanding of the concepts, consulting her works, and the works of people who specialize in her. My mentor told me to read, read, and read, so that I can discover a problem worth pursuing.
What a great day!
I was unable to enroll today for my master’s thesis. The secretary of the Philosophy Department of the Ateneo de Davao University said that they are currently not offering the graduate course Thesis 1 for the upcoming 1st semester.
But she assured me that the department will offer it now because there’s at least me who will enroll. She told me that she will text me when the course is formally open for enrollment, which will probably be this week or next week.
Thankfully, the visit to the University was not a total waste. The thesis course will be opened. Hopefully, I won’t be the only one to enroll. I expect 3 of my friends also to enroll.
While there, I visited the chapel and prayed.
Empathy 