As a pervasive surveyor of communication in all capacities, I understand and appreciate the power in which emotions dictate our communicative responses. Music personally, and for countless others, can immediately trigger an emotional response, or whisk us away to vivid memory enveloped by an emotional response. This project is a single person’s response in understanding the songs that can do just this for them, and I imagine for others as well.
Of course, musical tastes being subjective, many won’t agree with my specific examples; I can only hope to convey my interpretation as best as possible. There is music that collectively may have been presented one way, however, in a different lens can elicit a much different emotion. Exploring Emotions is aimed at doing just that.
Through using psychologist Dr. Plutchik’s emotional wheel several hundred songs have been curated to help explore this vast range of emotions. In addition to the 32 emotions represented on the wheel, an additional 20 were added to make this project a well-rounded year-long project. There will be a difference in opinion, and that’s great, it’s well welcomed. These lists and these songs serve a far greater purpose than being any sort of “best of” list. They are to help spark those uncomfortable conversations that we shelve.
As any creation dealing primarily with emotions it’s safe to say that there will be quite a few pieces which are triggering for viewers as well as for the creator. As the creator I am operating in a completely raw and emotionally vulnerable space; I am not in pursuit of sympathy or validation of my emotions, but rather attempting to understand the emotions which are present, in all of us on a perpetual basis. We’re going to operate on basic rules: if have nothing nice to say, then don’t say anything all. At the very least if you feel encumbered to say something evaluate yourself on whether or not it adds value. Tearing down my interpretation or concept doesn’t help you, and likely doesn’t help me. Adding insight to guide clarity through critical thought, that helps me, and anyone reading along.
The series of emotions were originally chosen from Dr. Plutchik’s emotional wheel where he listed 32 main emotions. 20 additional important emotions were added to delve into the deeper intricacies of the emotional range within all of us, as well as to round out the full year. The additional emotions were informed by the American Psychology Association, the DSM-V manual, as well as reference texts based on contemporary research of Dr. Plutchik’s original findings.