The Societal Impact of Outlaw Emotions

           One focus in Alison Jaggar’s article entitled, Love and Knowledge: Emotion in Feminist Epistemology, is the effect of emotions on our moral judgments. Positivists believe that emotions are irrational. This means that the less emotional and biased group of individuals has a claim to power. However, Jaggar offers the audience an altruistic view that claims emotion as an inevitable part of the human construct: “The alternative epistemological model that I suggest displays the continuous interaction between how we understand the world and who we are as people. It shows how our emotional responses to the world change as we conceptualize it differently and how our changing emotional responses then stimulate us to new insights.” (Jaggar, 184) The author claims that emotions are social constructs, but also to some extent active. The keyword here is active, and I believe that this premise can be explained by outlaw emotions described to the audience using feminist examples.

            Outlaw emotions offer new views of society, rather than just the conventional ways that society tells us we ought to feel. These views can cause new reflection and investigation. However, why should we trust the views that differ from the masses? Are we not told to feel a certain, conventional way for a reason? Jaggar argues that, “the emotional responses of oppressed people in general, and often of women in particular, are more likely to be appropriate than the emotional responses of the dominant class. That is, they are more likely to incorporate reliable appraisals of situations.” (Jaggar, 182) I believe this to mean that people who are in a desirable situation may choose to avoid the truth and side with convention and tradition just because this context has made them successful. Therefore, outlaw emotions should not simply be dismissed because they are different; they should be considered and reflected upon in relation to the conventional feelings caused by certain situations.

Outlaw emotions cause this process of self-examination. “The model also shows how feminist and other critical social theories are indispensable psychotherapeutic tools because they provide some insights necessary to a full understanding of our emotional constitution.” (Jaggar, 184) This reflexive process makes one think about why someone might feel differently than the conventions developed through a specific societal context, thus promoting knowledge and possibly changing societal outlooks.

            As previously stated, Jaggar’s alternative view states that emotions are simply part of the human evaluation process: “Emotions are neither more basic than observation, reason, or action in building theory, nor secondary to them. Each of these human faculties reflects an aspect of human knowing inseparable from the other aspects. Thus, to borrow a famous phrase from a Marxian context, the development of each of these faculties is a necessary condition for the development of all.” (Jaggar, 185) Jaggar also refers to these emotions as being active. I believe that outlaw emotions account for this idea of activity. Outlaw emotions conflict with the conventional feelings taught by society; they cause investigation, the broadening of knowledge, reflection and thus the possibility of social transformation. Emotions are active because when feelings differ, personal reflection ensues and could eventually cause a shift in societal norms.

Works Cited

1    1.   Jaggar, Alison. "Love and Knowledge: Emotion in Feminist Epistemology." DePauw Moodle. https://moodle.depauw.edu/file.php/1844/readings/jaggar_love_knowledge.pdf (accessed March 12, 2013).