About the talk

To form high-functioning societies, individuals must sacrifice a certain amount of personal freedom and ego-driven behavior for the greater good. Some theorists posit that true human empathy does not exist and that, in fact, all acts are motivated by ego gratification. However, most moral or religious systems have staked their claim to superiority on their espousal of altruism and have expressed that belief in shared myths and their images. By comparing archetypal Indian and Greek imagery, we see comparable tropes used to model cooperative societies and the expectations of self-sacrifice in times of crisis.

We now face existential threats: climate change, pandemics, wars and political/ social upheaval. As we lose familiarity with our traditional archetypes to visualize our fears and the ideals of heroism and empathy, can we acknowledge the power of image to find new expressions of empathy?

About the guest

Mary Storm has an MA in East Asian Studies from Stanford and a PhD in South Asian Art History from UCLA. She is the author of numerous articles on South Asian art, as well as the volume, Head and Heart: Valour and Self-Sacrifice in the Art of India (Routledge, 2013). She has taught at both American and Indian universities and lived 25 years in India. In a previous life, she was a lawyer and is presently a farmer in rural Sri Lanka.