When you’re deathly sick, it’s hard to imagine a state in which you don’t feel this way. Healthy and wanting to do stuff? It sounds completely foreign.
Similarly, it seems that it’s often hard to display emotions that you’re not feeling. When you’re upset at someone, it’s hard to act like you really like them. When you’re really happy, it’s hard to pretend like you’re sad. Or maybe it’s not even that it’s hard to pretend, but it’s hard to put yourself in a place where you can understand and feel the emotion.
That’s kind of the point of emotions I suppose. They are feelings. When you are feeling something, you don’t feel other things. That is, until you start mixing emotions. Bittersweet comes to mind. When you feel two emotions at the same time.
If someone you deeply love dies, you are most likely, unless you’re a monster, going to feel many heavy emotions. Sadness, fear, perhaps anger, rage, hopeless, etc. Depending on who you are, there may be many tears that come along with it or yelling.
But now, it’s hard to imagine that. When that person you love is sitting right in front of you, it’s hard to make yourself feel those feelings of sadness, hopelessness, etc. Because they’re not. They’re standing right in front of you, so how can you feel sad?
This is why I think some of the most gifted actors are the ones who can flip these emotions on a dime. People who have worked hard to make their emotions fluid. We’ve probably all seen a movie that has someone who is “crying” but it doesn’t look at all like they’re crying. Or maybe they’re crying, but the crying doesn’t match the moment. It’s the wrong kind of cry.
These are the kinds of things that the best actors in the world do. They turn a script into emotions that you could actually believe. Maybe some put themselves in the place where they actually are feeling that emotion. Thinking to a loved one passing or something. I don’t know how they all do it.
I’ve realized that I am not the greatest at expressing my emotions. Whether my real emotions or emotions I want to convey. They’re not very “loud” you might say. This may be a common trend amongst men. It’s not that they don’t have emotions, it’s that their emotions are shielded by…who knows what. For me, it’s not even purposeful, and I often wish I could express them better, but it’s simply not natural.
I believe I’ve come to the conclusion that you cannot experience an emotion you don’t feel. I may sound like an insane person saying that because it’s obvious, but if you are experiencing something in your mind and heart, whether you want to or not, that is the emotion you feel, you cannot feel a different one. You may force yourself to experience a different emotion, and in that case, begin to feel that emotion, but you can’t do both.
Any questions? Great. Have an emotional weekend.