Shakespeare and Emotional Empathy

Shakespeare wrote about emotions and their link to decision-making and action in all his plays. Emotional empathy forms a vital part of responding to the patient’s real concerns. This chapter describes the plot of Macbeth, revealing Shakespeare’s curiosity around the origin of feelings, the role of imagination and their relationship to character and action. The links between emotions, imagination, and empathy are explored with insights into arrogance, kindness, and grief. An appropriate self-other boundary is necessary if doctors are to share the patient’s emotions. However, if doctors are not supported, or feel stressed, they may suffer burnout. Burnout, an increasingly common phenomenon among doctors and medical students, is described and ways of preventing it are explored.