Emotions could be viewed as special ways of relating or as relational methods, or skills, with a particular body/mind configuration. As such, emotions’ primary function is adding powerful but highly customized relational capabilities, enabling emotional organisms to relate to individual elements beyond generic or instinctive categories. They act as our interface with our complex environment and are analogous to countries’ domestic and foreign policies or positions vis-a-vis other issues and countries, including necessary preparation for peace or war. With these capabilities, we can relate in a unique manner to each of thousands of different elements and change these orientations quickly as needed. These capacities are particularly necessary for mammals with complex social systems. Emotions are not part of, nor do they oppose cognition, which only participates in their design and management, as it does in most other human activities.
Emotions are a manner of relating which people experience. People literally feel how they perceive and relate, sense these special relationships, and experience their position vis-a-vis elements! This is why people are angry or in love, and don’t just have angry thoughts or a perception of love.
Emotions express our drives and values and are neither rational nor irrational thoughts or judgments. Objectivity and rationality do not operate without or despite emotions, but within a personal or collective universe shaped by them. As in Einstein’s theory, it shows our space to be permanently “curved” by emotions, and our need to navigate within it.