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Single Idea 15577

[filed under theme 18. Thought / A. Modes of Thought / 3. Emotions / c. Role of emotions ]

Full Idea

For Heidegger moods are disclosive; they show us things in a more fundamental way than theoretical propositions ever can. For example, fear reveals something as a threat.

Gist of Idea

Moods are more fundamentally revealing than theories - as when fear reveals a threat

Source

report of Martin Heidegger (Being and Time [1927], I.5.30) by Richard Polt - Heidegger: an introduction 3.§30

Book Ref

Polt,Richard: 'Heidegger: an introduction' [Routledge 2003], p.66


A Reaction

Most modern students of emotion seem to agree. Even though they may not have specific content, it is always possible to consider the underlying cause of the mood.


The 19 ideas with the same theme [role played by emotion in mental life]:

For Descartes passions are God-given preservers of the mind-body union [Descartes, by Taylor,C]
Passions reside in confused perceptions [Leibniz]
Kant thought emotions are too random and passive to be part of morality [Kant, by Williams,B]
Moods are more fundamentally revealing than theories - as when fear reveals a threat [Heidegger, by Polt]
Emotions are a sort of bodily incantation which brings a magic to the world [Sartre]
Emotions makes us believe in and live in a new world [Sartre]
The passions are subjective, concerning what is important to me, rather than facts [Solomon]
Emotions are strategies for maximising our sense of dignity and self-esteem [Solomon]
It is only our passions which give our lives meaning [Solomon]
Passions exist as emotions, moods and desires, which all generate meaning [Solomon]
The Myth of the Passions says they are irrational, uncontrolled and damaging [Solomon]
Which emotions we feel depends on our sense of our own powers [Solomon]
Reference to a person's emotions is often essential to understanding their actions [Williams,B]
An emotion is a motive which is also a feeling [Scruton]
Emotional responses can reveal to us our values, which might otherwise remain hidden [Goldie]
If we have a 'feeling towards' an object, that gives the recognition a different content [Goldie]
When actions are performed 'out of' emotion, they appear to be quite different [Goldie]
It is best to see emotions holistically, as embedded in a person's life narrative [Goldie]
If emotions are 'towards' things, they can't be bodily feelings, which lack aboutness [Goldie]