Cornell professor Joseph Margulies discusses a writing exercise created by award-winning writer and teacher Rachel Kadish that asks students to write from the perspective of someone expressing views they find abhorrent, connecting this practice to broader issues of societal division and empathy. Professor Margulies argues that consciously attempting to understand others’ perspectives and behaviors before passing judgment—even when their actions are deplorable—is essential for reducing social polarization and recognizing our shared humanity.
Cornell law professor Joseph Margulies describes how he arrived at his moral philosophy, summed up as “there is no them, there is only us.” Professor Margulies explains that it comes in part from an understanding that all of humanity is imprisoned by our individual autobiographies—the profound choices that define our existence, like how we respond to loss, shame, rage, and pain.
