Why do we assign values to emotions and feelings?

[Coendou]

Hi all,

First post so be gentle if its not in placed in the right section.

I'm doing a writing project and I've come to an intelectual dead end.

I'm basically trying to trace motivations, i.e. survival instincts, back to their source.

I've gathered that we survive due to positive of negative reinforcement. We eat because it hurts if we don't.
We reproduce because of the pleasure we derive from it.

Perhaps you have another theory, but that would be off topic to my end point.

So, we have feelings and emotions. I have read the entire wiki page about them and the various theories. I understand the causes of emotions and the reaction to them, but here is my problem.

Why do we assign values to feelings?

I know it is not completely uniform. Some people enjoy pain and participate in BDSM, but for argument's sake, let stick to the norm

The reason I find this perplexing, is because one could program a computer to do certain things and if it did, it would function better, and if it didn't its performance would wane.

For example, if a computer highlighted a picture of a ball, the CPU would run faster, and if not it would be throttled.

The computer, even if programmed with curiosity, may choose to or not to do this task on a philosophical, experimental level to see what happened, but would have no preference for either or its own survival. It might find it interesting to no longer exist. It would most likely be totally indifferent to existence.

Life has a preference to survival and pleasure and an aversion to pain, discomfort and death.

Can someone explain what this element that life has that a machine could never have?

What is it in life that assigns values to emotions?

[Zepher08]

Coendou, are you really asking this question because you do not understand the use of the emotional experience? Or is it simply to tap into peoples ideas?

Why not ask what is the job of emotions. How do emotions serve life force/the organism? What is the purpose of skin? Why would skin be require sensitivity to the environment? The emotional body and the physical body go hand in hand. Basically when I have a head cold I am not exactly content.

I consider emotions signals... they are information that lead to towards health and away from disease... mental and physical. That is the way I interpret emotions. Anger is an alarm clock. something is not in balance.



Certainly you have experienced fear? Fear has a purpose. At base fear assist a person to move towards safety promoting life and survival of the organism.

I was listening to a radio show that was discussing this newly discovered condition. There was a woman being studied because she did not experience fear. Woman was unable to distinguish threat from that which promotes health and life. She was able to take action in risky situations that others would have run from . It was an interesting presentation.

 Thing was she also was  getting hurt because her emotional perceptions were on one side OFF. considering fear and love are the base of all emotions ... not having fear is going to change the picture in a huge way.

Love delivers the message of health and well being and Fear delivers the message that something does not promote health. That is not a matter that I question as in why would I value. It isn't even my business to ask the question. I am not the designer of the organism. I might as well be asking... why do I have skin and why sense of touch. It is a package deal.

Feeling love signals that something promotes life, nourishes and Fear signals threat danger something that does not promote life, does not nourish.Feeling are navigational tools.

Some folks rely more on the emotional navigation while other people rely more on say intellect or reason. both have there good sides and bad sides depending on how the user is working the tools.

I find that a balance of emotion and objective reason work well together. But it all depends. now and then objectivity is all that is necessary. Where as other times an emotional alarm clock does the trick just fine. Then there is always intuition and so fourth. People do not value intuition too very much. Where as objectivity and reason is often over valued. Just my opinion.

 

[Coendou]

I gave the reason why I asked this question, and that was to trace the origin of motivation.

It's purely a philosophical curiosity.

"Why not ask what is the job of emotions?"

I already know what the job of emotions are. That is quite elementary.

I have a different question that I can't find an answer to online.

[gone]

I will never understand why people answer a question with a question.

When pondering upon such questions as the origins of motivations I try to see the bigger picture. For example I would wonder if ferrel children brought up by animals have the same motivations as the 'norm' and do people with brain damage have the same motivations. Therefore I first explore if it's cultural or neurological.

 

Hi all,

I'm basically trying to trace motivations, i.e. survival instincts, back to their source.

To answer your question - we wouldn't be here or writing this if life wasnt' the motivation for survival. Therefore you have to go back to the origins of life, as it is life itself that is the motivation factor for survival.
Without this motivation we would not be here. You would have to go back to trilobites and before to understand the gene/cell or whatever biologigal factor motivates life. And it is this that has developed in our brains to preserve life and recognise 'pain' is dangerous to life.. 'pleasure' is more likely to sustain it. Pleasure in lovemaking is procreting (making life), whatever pleasures we derive it's most often to do with procreating. A man will find pleasure in expensive cars, this will make him more attractive to females.. a female will find pleasure in perfum - this she beleives will make her more attractive to males.. etc...

The motivation I believe you are looking for is LIFE itslef.