4. Emotion

A. Nature of Emotion

1. Can feelings have a rational basis? Would it be better or worse if emotions could be justified? Are emotions and feelings essential? Is 'emotional intelligence' an oxymoron?
2. Can there be 'correct' or 'appropriate' emotional responses? Is it 'correct' to be horrified by accounts of torture? Can emotions be classified as 'good' or 'bad'?
3. Is it possible to experience an emotion, a feeling, an attitude or sensibility that cannot be expressed in language? Can an emotion, such as love or grief, have its origins in, or be shaped by, language?
4. Is physical pain or hunger an emotion?

B. Limitations of Emotion

1. Is the knowledge gained from emotional responses influenced by culture? Are concepts such as patriotism and racism examples of collective emotions? What does it mean to be responsible for our emotions? Do emotional responses emanate from cultural influences?
2. Does emotion reside in the realm of private knowledge in the sense that it cannot be verified by others? Is all private knowledge necessarily some form of emotion?
3. Can people be wrong about their own emotions?
4. Do people have, in some sense, exclusive access to their emotions or can others lead them to recognize previously unknown emotions?

C. Linking Questions

1. What part does emotion play in the acquisition of knowledge? Does the role of emotion vary across the different Areas of Knowledge? Should emotion play such a role in the evaluation of knowledge claims?
2. Is an action morally justifiable if it feels right? What part do, or should, emotions play in the formation of moral judgements or political judgements? Do people act their way into feeling or feel their way into action? In other words, are the motives for involvement emotionally prompted? At what point, if any, may the motives for involvement in the Creativity, Action, Service programme be emotionally prompted?
3. Is faith purely emotional or is it possible to provide a rational justification for religious belief? Is emotion a source of spiritual knowledge? If so, how can we justify discussing spiritual matters in public?
4. Is there any kind of knowledge which can be attained solely through emotion? Is the answer to the question dependent on factors such as gender, age, culture, and/or socioeconomic group?
5. Is emotion an essential ingredient of scientific or artistic knowledge? Can there be creativity without emotion?