MAN is a Bundle of Emotion
Bundle and emotion I don’t think the two words qualify each
other best to describe man, Just two words for the most complex being on earth
! Why don’t say ocean of emotion or some other tag….if we really want to supply
one …for tags such as these limit the capabilities of man…..
So what are the implications of calling man ‘a bundle of emotion’? Doesn’t this statement limit man to a slave
of emotion …for emotion have been considered
a powerful force …that can motivate man for accomplishing any task .
Before I move ahead , let us first understand the meaning of
emotion…a better understanding of the same will help us understand that man is
not simply ….a bundle of emotion.
Elaine Fox describes in the book “ Emotion : An integration
of cognitive and neuroscientific
approaches “ says - Emotion is
discrete and consistent response to internal or external events
which have a particular significance for the organism
As per the oxford dictionary: A strong feeling deriving from
one`s circumstances, moods or relationships with others
Both this system highlight that emotion is a part of the S-
R system i.e. stimulus response system.
Emotion is considered too subjective, elusive and vague
….and to be the opposite of reason .It means that if man remains or acts…..Being
just a bundle of emotion than most of his acts can cause chaos in the society
…more of it to him only.
Let us take the bundle now….A group of things tied together
…yes…..That is what we call a bundle. In present context …going by the words….it means group of emotion tied or wrapped together …or
let us say existing together …Does this mean that man unbundles his bundle when
a particular emotion is shown….for…. two different emotions are rarely shown
simultaneously or at the same time.
If this is the case. Then how he unbundles his bundle of
emotion…?....the answer is simple…….Its
cognition…..its cognition which analyses the situation ,either way,….and
unfolds an emotion from this bundle.
To support this statement I would like to cite two theories
relating to emotion….either James –Lange theory or Schechter –singer theory.
Both the theories argue that emotion is the ultimate outcome
of an event which leads to arousal and interpretation or reasoning followed by
emotion. We can infer that the thing we refer as emotion is actually an outcome
triggered by some stimulus and supported interpretation or reasoning.
It would have been
correct to tag man as a bundle of emotion if all of his actions would have been
guided by it .But that’s not the case in general. Emotion is good….it’s the
tastemaker …but it does not always get involve with work. sometimes man`s
action are guided by cognition and ideas…….An idea comes to his mind …..he
feels excited about it …..And longs to implement it…… so the idea comes first
and then the emotion.
Our fellow friends may see something somewhere….something
attractive may be! ….which may lead to an overflow of emotion……. What type of
bundle is involved here in this case? ……No Bundle!..................... it’s an
S-R relationship. There is a stimulus and then a response which leads to a
conscious experience. This conscience experience is emotion. But again we see
that there are other more important factors involved in human behavior besides
emotion.
We all may be familiar with the “ras sidhant” of
Bharatmuni , which describes the different type of emotion which arise after
reading a literary piece of art.This typical “ras sidhant” too describes an S-R
relationship first. The emergence of emotion occurs later and that too only
when we cognitively analyze and understand the stimulus being put in.
What happens we hear a joke…we don’t always laugh until we
understand what is being said….we laugh only when we have gathered the meaning.
If man would have been a simple creature ,a simple creature with a bundle of
emotions….just like a bundle of stick…he would have unbundled this bundle to
acknowledge every piece of work with
emotion and shed his so called emotion. But this is again …..not the case
always……because man is an ocean of cognition, he is Thomson’s plum pudding
model……..plum pudding model of cognition in which are spread negative and
positive emotions. It is the duty of his cognition to arrange this negative and
positive emotion in a manner so that they may cancel or remain…..
Hence to conclude……
Man`s life is a system of S-R relationships where cognition prevails
……cognition inhales or exhales emotion……emotion is a stream……
