The Empathy Man

Artist Interpretation

Empathy is both the restriction and the key to a utopic world. The connection that allows people to understand one another in more than a mere rational comprehension. If we were to compare ourselves to machines, why is it that a system of (well programmed) machines works in such harmony and does not conflict? Because they understand each other at maximum capacity and in real time. Complete synchronization. Humans, are distinguished by the fact that we have emotions, giving us an additional layer of communication which separates us from machines. A machine uses electrical signals to work in synchronicity, humans communicate in empathy. Empathy, which by no means is an efficient form of communication, is for a good reason fragile and limited. When one sees a homeless person on the street, a war-torn orphan, or any other suffering life, briefly we empathize, we feel for it and would not wish this fate on anyone. Yet, with the next distraction we forget, desensitized by the overwhelming stimuli and observations, that empathetic connection disintegrated to preserve your mind. If you were to feel everyone’s pain permanently and completely, your mind would break, that is why our limited empathy is a necessary biological flaw.

The empathy man is a story of a man who is capable of feeling the world’s pain at full capacity. A man who understands the wrongs of the planet. However, he struggles as he is alone in having this ability, the gift and the curse of complete empathy. This song speculates about a utopia where harmony is achieved through empathy. If every person was capable of understanding everyone around, entirely, pain would be dissolved, and happiness shared. For example, a soldier who sees a war-torn orphan would cease to continue fighting because his empathy recognizes the pain of that orphan and his rational incentive to cause war would be replaced with a motive, based on emotion, to end it. Pain is an emotion naturally undesired, therefore if everyone felt one another’s pain, there would be a collective effort to end this pain. It is because no one extensively understands the other’s pain, that we feel careless enough to cause it. Meanwhile, happiness when empathized with and felt, is kept, maintained, and shared. Seeing another person smile, love and laugh, naturally invites others to feel the same. Therefore, if all where to feel complete empathy, like the protagonist of this song, then the world could be utopic. However, because the empathy man is alone with this gift, he is left with discourse and the burden to carry out his vision.

Lyrics Explained

“Here comes the empathy man,

Strong as a soldier in his no man’s land,”

The empathy man, much like a soldier is courageous for a cause, being the lone survivor in a no man’s land, he is left with no one to fight for, to fight with, to compare and preach to, except himself.

“Here comes the empathy man,

He who won’t forgive the virtues of this wasteland,”

Although the battles of this world preach necessity, where each battle claims the righteous cause, the empathy man realizes after the war, overlooking the wasteland, conflict does not occur due to the existence of a belief or cause, but rather the disagreements that rise between them. He understands that had all the soldiers felt the empathy he did, the conflicts of these beliefs would resolve and settle on a common ground. The empathy man won’t forgive the virtues of the society that caused this conflict, more importantly he will not forget them. It is because empathy is forgotten that conflicts reoccur.

“And no one understands,

Because the mind chooses to forget and not endure the truth,”

However, the empathy man cannot blame the people because their lack of empathy is merely a biological defense mechanism.

“It’s the flaw that keeps us running in circles.”

When the empathy man studies the history of the world, he realizes that this lack of empathy is what causes people to fight again and again, almost as if each time the world has lost its empathy and forgotten the suffering that arises from its conflicts.

Running in circles.

History repeats.

“And the pain of World,

And the man who felt it all,

The discourse in his mind,

He knows he knows,

That if he wasn’t alone,

And the world felt what he owned,

The peace that would come from empathy as one.”

The empathy man is alone in understanding this idea, being alone to bear the world’s collective suffering, he struggles to comprehend it. However, he knows that if the entire world felt his empathy, there would be harmony and a utopia would be born. From empathy as one.

“Unfortunately, his knowledge is not one that’s his to share.”

Sadly, he cannot simply preach this idea, one cannot simply teach or force this idea. He was gifted this understanding, but his curse is that he cannot control it or pass it on.

“Unfortunately, he’s trapped to bear and handle this trickling affair.” 

The only way the empathy man could pursue his destiny, in creating an empathetic world, is with a trickling effect. As people observe him do his selfless deeds. His leadership, character and role modeling will trickle down on to the new world.

“He tries to have his speech heard,

To the world that laughs for he’s absurd,”

However, he still has a journey to go. The world as it is now, only laughing at his proposal. Once again, if he could pass on this empathy easily and have the world understand his perspective, his knowledge would be a gift. However, because it is a knowledge that he cannot pass on at once, it is a destiny testing his patience, making this a gift as well as a burden.

“He stumbles home, defeated, alone.

But he smiles because it’s not the end of the world. Yet.”

The empathy man realizes this test of his patience, but in his heart, he knows he is right, and despite being rejected/defeated, he smiles.

“Just one touch, a hand of love,

He only needs someone to help him.

Be the giving man he was born to be, the one to bring this world empathy,”

Still, the empathy man is simply a man. He alone cannot handle the burden of being fully empathetic and having to change the world. He discovers that the one power that can fuel his empathy and his hope is love.

“Just one touch, a hand of love,

He only needs someone to help him.

Be the giving man he was born to be, the one to bring this world…”

Love of one person is all he needs to make his start, and together, with the one he loves, the one who understands him, the one who works in parallel with him, he can begin to spread this love. Like in biology, it takes two to make more.

“The discourse in his mind cannot be solved. The one conflict he cannot hold,

he needs the love of just one soul.

to give him hope to make a better world.”

Alone the empathy man is at the breaking point of his mentality and insanity. Only love can keep his mind true, his hope burning and his patience never ending.