Sympathy or Empathy: Journal Prompt

[salixj]

Blame this post on the fact that I was up at 3am (a time which should be outlawed in my opinion), and couldn't get right back to sleep.

As I lay there trying to sleep, events of the past days coursed through my mind.

Sympathy and empathy. Which is a "superior" emotion.

I have heard arguments on both sides.

As you delve into this prompt here are several questions to consider.

• How do you understand the meaning of the two words?
• Compare and contrast sympathy and empathy. What are the differences, how are they similar?
• Think of a time that you felt sympathy. Who did you feel the emotion for? What were the physical sensations you had? How did this make you act to the person? Do the same for empathy.
• Did it take you longer to reach a state of calm or peace from one emotion versus the other? Or were they both the same?
• How did you return to a state of peace? Did you need to do anything or did it just happen?
• Do you think one emotion is more suitable to certain events than the other?
• Can you move from one emotion to the other at will and how do you do that?
• What images come to your mind from each of the emotions? 
• Think about a time when you were the recipient of either sympathy and a time when you were a recipient of  empathy. How did you know which emotion was being expressed or did you know?

As always you may think of other questions.

Enjoy and let me know your feelings on the subject.