For the first time ever on MasterClass, a diverse range of our instructors come together to talk about the power of empathy and how it can transform the way you view the world. Join Pharrell Williams, Robin Arzón, Roxane Gay, Walter Mosley, Robert Reffkin, Gloria Steinem, and Cornel West as they share their experiences with empathy and its importance in their lives and careers. Learn how to exercise, cultivate, and promote empathy to connect with others on a deeper, more human level.
Overview
Syllabus
- Meet Your Instructors
- Pharrell Williams introduces you to the class and the co-instructors who will discuss the importance of empathy in their lives and their careers.
- Waking Up to Empathy
- In this lesson, Pharrell Williams takes you on a journey from his childhood to his successful days as an artist and the ways he found empathy along the way by using music to connect with others.
- The Evolution of Empathy
- Cornel West talks about the origins of empathy—its relationship to sympathy and how religion and empathy are interconnected. He also discusses writers Edith Stein, George Eliot, and Toni Morrison and how they tackle empathy in their work.
- Reaching Intellectual Diversity
- Roxane Gay delves into how writing has the potential to create meaningful change in society by generating empathy in readers and Walter Mosley talks about how reading builds empathy by expanding our worldview.
- Changing Your Vantage Point
- Pharrell Williams talks about putting yourself in others’ shoes to see the bigger picture of how their lives and perspectives differ from your own. He also walks you through an exercise to help you open up to others’ feelings and experiences.
- Empathy as a Democratizing Force
- Gloria Steinem discusses the importance of empathy to the human experience. She delves deep into the history of Talking Circles and how they are the maximum expression of empathy and the basis for movements and creating change in the world.
- The Love Ethic
- Cornel West talks about the connection between poverty and empathy and the legacy of Lyndon B. Johnson’s “War on Poverty” and Martin Luther King’s “Poor People’s Campaign.”
- Working With Others
- Pharrell Williams explores the ways he applies empathy to his creative process and his collaborations with other artists, while Robert Reffkin discusses how empathetic leadership can foster a more successful workplace.
- Extinguishing Limitations & Empowering Others
- Robin Arzón talks about the correlation between athletes and empathy, the ways community helps us feel more empowered and connected, and how empathy is the best way to heal from loss.
- Do Something
- In this lesson, Pharrell Williams talks about the potential in all of us to build a truly equal society using empathy to fuel action, and the importance of keeping the conversation around empathy alive.
Taught by
Pharrell Williams, Robin Arzón, Roxane Gay, Walter Mosley, Robert Reffkin, Gloria Steinem, and Cor
