Emotion
Movement
An emotion is a brief, reactive movement within the body and mind that follows interpretation. The word comes from movement — an emotion moves you toward or away from something.
An emotion is a quick internal surge — like anger or joy — that pushes you to do something. It rises and passes.
Duration
Short-lived — seconds to minutes
Origin
Follows directly from interpretation
Purpose
To motivate action. Fear moves you to safety, anger to defend a boundary, joy to approach and repeat.
Characteristics
Examples
Real-life situations
Cut off in traffic
A surge of anger rises to defend your safety and dignity. It peaks quickly and, if not fed by further interpretation, fades within moments.
Common confusion
Everyday language
“I am angry.”
More precisely
“I am experiencing anger.”
"I am angry" makes the emotion sound like your identity. "I am experiencing anger" recognises it as a passing movement, not who you are.
Relationships
Produced by
Leads to
Frequently confused with
Opposites
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