Better Lives: Reflection of Lecture 8 about Empathy
Empathy is something we all possess, and that every human being can relate to. Many have plenty of empathy and make it their life mission to help, while others might lack empathy sometimes. In the book “Empathy: A handbook for Revolution”, Roman Krznaric states that empathy is “The art of stepping imaginatively into the shoes of another person, understanding their feelings and perspectives and using that understanding to guide your actions”. In the lecture we were introduced to “Empathy Things” which are events that foster empathy between people and creates emphatic experiences. Exactly like Krznaric highlights.
The lecture was held by Professor Lorraine Gamman, and she explained topics related to the theme of empathy. Some of the themes that I especially resonated with was Empathy things, Designing for Empathy and how the fashion industry sometimes lacks empathy.
Designing for Empathy
“A Mile in My Shoes” was an experience created in 2015 that allowed visitors to put on shoes and headphones and walk a mile listening to someone else’s life. It is argued that experiences like this can create emphatic understanding between diverse groups in society. I believe this experience give the chance for people to increase their understanding of different perspectives.
Lack of empathy
In the past there has been multiple of episodes in the fashion industry where the opposite of empathy has been shown. We have seen this in many adverts where female objectification has been shown. Gamman discussed the Calvin Klein advert from 2010 that shows model Lara Stone semi-naked, being manhandled and held by the hair by a group of males. At the time this advert was highly criticized for its deception of sexual assault. Using women as an object of sexual assault in this way in the fashion industry or any other industry, is lack of empathy and sending out the wrong signals of what is right and wrong.
I believe that the more fashion brands should become more aware of how they can tell important stories through fashion. It’s important to stress what we as a society need to pay attention to and make better, and in this way get more people to connect with each other. Alexander Mcqueen did exactly this with his Highland Rape Catwalk that displayed bruised women wearing torn clothes to shed light on rape victims. That show was very raw and real, and I think it’s brave of a designer to use their power and voice for the better.