by Ian Caithness

Created on: August 28, 2007

Intellect and Emotion are two of the diverse subjects that are often upon the mind of philosophers across the world, some stating that Intellect and Emotion cannot be united in their focus because of the differences of each one and the contradictions between the two whilst others state that such perceptions are biased and that Intellect and Emotion must coexist with one another for a person to survive. However, the question still remains, who is right in this matter? Should we believe that we are expected to follow one or the other, should we believe that the coexistence of Intellect and Emotion will lead to our salvation in life?

It is a complex question to answer, one that might have a thousand different answers for each person but it is one that we must all answer for ourselves, for our soul and mind. Intellect is something that most possess, whether it be in art, in science or in general knowledge, we have a form of Intellect within us and thus it is evident that, because we depend upon our mind to offer us answers to questions that we ask, Intellect is the more important of the two but what is it that makes Emotion so important in life?

Emotion, as it stands, is something that we cannot understand. Describe happiness; it's impossible, for each person, it is different, similar to how the focus of our Intellect depends upon the person and their interests. If our Intellect offers us answers to questions, our Emotion must, to follow suit that Intellect and Emotion cannot coexist, contradict the statement. As an example, consider the nature of Love, Intellect would have it described as an emotion, a single word used to describe an emotion but our soul describes it as so much more; love is beautiful, harmonious and peaceful, love is the light in the darkness, etc. A contradiction in statements, is it not?

Look deeper into the meaning, Emotion, in my opinion, is an extension of Intellect that helps us to better define our lives. When we are in school, we depend upon our Intellect to help us pass exams but it is our Emotion that guides us through, telling us how we should feel, should we be nervous, frightened or happy. Without Emotion, we are no more than robots with a large capacity for knowledge but with Emotion, we become human and thus, in my opinion, Emotion and Intellect must coexist for us to exist as humans.

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