Alfred Adler, a physician and physiologist once said “Empathy is seeing with the eyes of another, listening with the ears of another, and feeling with the heart of another.”
Understanding empathy is understanding that sometimes you should focus on others feelings instead of your own, and being able to feel what someone else is feeling.
In the Novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, there are many examples where Jem and Scout feel empathetic towards others. When Jem and Scout torment Boo Radley, when scout bullies Walter Cunningham, and when Mr, Raymond explains the effects of racism. This shows that They are learning to feel for others and are becoming less selfish as they grow up.
Jem and Scout were tormenting Boo Radley. Atticus explained It's not nice because they haven’t got to know him. Jem, Scout, and Dill would play games pretending to be Mr. Radley. Scout knew it wasn’t nice and it was unfair but she would play anyway. “We weren’t makin fun of him, we weren't laughing at him” (P.65).
It's rude and unkind to make fun of Mr. Radley, especially before they got to know him. It's easier to be nice and mind your business, than to take time out of your day to torment and be mean.
…show more content…
Scout thought Walter was giving her a hard time in school, so she beat him up. She has a hard time interpreting other people's feelings. “If you can learn a simple trick Scout, you’ll get along a lot better with all kinds of folks. You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view…Until you climb into his skin and walk around in it” (P.39). Everybody lives different lives and has different experiences. Everybody has different feelings and different viewpoints on the world, so you wouldn't know what someone else is feeling unless you are