Is there a difference...

Is there a difference between the words Pity and Compassion? I'm having trouble isolating any difference between the two.

compassion does not always require pity.

pity has an element of condescension.

So when Compassion is like pity, it's condescension, when compassion is like empathy, it's....????

soulfilms said it well. Compassion is "co-feeling", empathy, ability to feel what the other person feels, to "suffer along".. A very "noble" sort of feeling and very powerful.. I find it to be one of the most important ingredients in a close relationship. And feeling it in no way implies less respect or love or admiration of the person who is the object of it.

Pity, on the other hand, is condescending.. It's "oh, poor you" feeling that has at least a little bit of "you are weak, you are a loser, it's embarrassing to be you" slant to it..

> So when Compassion is like pity, it's
> condescension, when compassion is like
> empathy, it's....????

I am not sure what you are saying. Compassion is not like pity. Pity is pity, it's more or less condescending. Compassion is always "like empathy".

There are certain phrases that are oxymorons. I define oxymoron as a phrase that means the opposite of what it's intended meaning was.

Saying "I am a humble person" is an example of what I consider to be an oxymoron. To me, saying "I am a humble person" is a form of bragging! [img]tongue.gif[/img] (unless you want to argue that a humble person is also merely speaking the truth when they call themselves a humble person)

I believe for the term "compassion" to exist in an empathatic state would require a third person stating it about someone else after observing them interacting with another.

So, once again, I cannot say "I am a compassionate person" without it sounding egocentric and condescending. However, a third person could say that about someone else.

That is why, in my opinion, if a person says "I pity that person" or "I have compassion for that person", the two phrases become practically indistinguishable from one another.

But a third party observer could say, he or she is a compassionate person, and it would definitely be different than the use of the word pity.