Reason and Emotions

The world we live in today is largely dictated by reason and logic.  Statistics, based on logical assumptions, govern everything from foreign policy, to marketing strategies, to our school systems.  We seem to rely heavily on reason and logic as a basis for formulating ideas, structuring institutions, and a means by which to live our daily lives.  However this may be, reason and logic stem from the conscious part of our brain, about 10-15% of our brain's functionality, and there is very little account taken as to how reason and logic are informed and how we come to our logical conclusions about things.  The unconscious part of our brain, often times repressed, plays an important role in defining who we are and how we make our decisions. 

There was an interesting opinion piece written a few weeks ago about this topic and how emotion, often times absent or subdued in everyday decisions, actually plays a more important role in our everyday lives.  There is new science emerging in a number of different fields that suggests our previous view of society, based upon the individual and his capabilities is inherently skewed.  As humans, we are more than simply individuals living separate lives who happen to interact with others.  As individuals, we are built of our connections to others, the societies we live in, and our basic interactions with other individuals.  These interactions, while we may claim are based on logic and reason, are based more in emotion and how these interactions affect us on a personal level. 

Reason and logic, some may claim, are separate from emotion and should be the basis of what we do.  However, these claims do not take into account that reason and logic are driven by emotion.  Every decision we make, however much we claim that is rational or logical, stems from some emotive response driving us either towards A or B.   If we make a decision without calculating the emotional drive behind it and rely solely on what is logical or rational, often times we end up regretting that decision either because it does not wholly satisfy us or leaves us with a lack of satisfaction or unhappiness.  Further, our emotions, developed in our subconscious based on interactions with others be it friends, family, or society, are the basis of who we are.  Our emotive responses are based on what we learn from others and how they respond to different stimuli.  We build upon these emotive responses of others when we are younger, compiling an arsenal of data in our subconsious as to how emotions drive people, and use different parts to build our own emotive responses to stimuli directly affecting us.  Unconsiously, these emotions come to drive every rational/logical decision we make based on how we will react after making that decision.  If you take a child and lock him/her in a closet for years with no human interaction, there will be no emotion and thus a skewed sense of reason and logic.  We are not separate entities happening to coexist with others, we strive off of these interactions with others and it builds a well-rounded individual. 

For an example, lets look at the school system.  For years, we have been trying to figure out the best way to raise students scores, trying bigger schools, smaller schools, different tests to calculate their knowledge.  Yet, for the most part, these attempts have not been driven by the basis of all learning, a students' interaction with their teacher.  This most basic part of learning has been pushed to the side, relying more on physical knowledge gained through textbooks and translated into test scores.  For yet another example of how vital emotion is in our daily lives, one can also look at technology and its ability to drive a wedge between humans as a basis for detracting emotion from human interaction.  When you simply respond to a text or email, you can rarely pick up on the emotion behind it or completely misinterpret it.  Without face to face interaction, the human mind falters and retreats or responds incorrectly.  An enormous part of our daily interactions depends upon our interpretation of body language, tone of voice, and sense of touch and smell, all of which are driven by our subconscious and emotion whether or not we would like to admit it. 

Many of us were taught from a young age that we should cover our emotions and not let them be seen by others.  This is an inherently incorrect stance to take as it takes away the basis for reason and logic.  We can not take out one piece of human existence and expect the rest to take over and actually run smoothly and dictate our lives.  By repressing our emotions, we are taking away the basis of human interaction.  We should all be in touch with our emotions, our passions, and be aware of how they drive us to become who we are today based in part on our interactions with others and how their emotions and passions drive them.  We are all interconnected and we need to focus more on our connections with others as a basis for who we are before we look at ourselves and how we can improve.  Without social interaction we will falter.  Without emotion, we become automatons.  There needs to be a concerted effort to bring humanity back to its roots.  So take some time today, consider who you are and how you got to where you are today.  Inspect your emotions and look at how they dictate your rational and logical decisions throughout the day.  Let your passions unfold and follow them to their end.  If you get in touch with your emotions and those of others, your life will be a little more wholesome and well rounded (at least thats my opinion).