The War for Kindness: Building Empathy in a Fractured World

Jamil Zaki describes how many people believe empathy is a feeling, such as “I feel your pain” (4). However, he argues that empathy is more complex and does not have one single definition. Rather, empathy is “an umbrella term that describes the multiple ways people respond to one another” (178). Zaki introduces three forms of empathy in the Introduction and describes them in detail in Appendix A. These three forms of empathy are: “sharing, thinking about, and caring about others’ feelings” (178).

While empathy is considered a “‘soft’ quality” (264), Zaki strongly believes it is worthy of scientific study. Scientists, including Zaki, use different measures to scientifically examine empathy—many of which he details throughout his book. By better understanding empathy, Zaki suggests people can make it more commonplace in the modern world.

Musekeweya, or New Dawn, is a popular radio show created by George Weiss. The main characters are the lovers Batamuriza and Shema, who are from two villages at odds with each other. The narrative is a metaphor for the Rwandan genocide. Weiss chose radio as the medium for his show to help fix the harm radio caused the Rwandan people (as it incited many killings).