Nussbaum and Emotions

In the Nussbaum article we read for class, she makes certain claims that I believe are true, but like everything in life, there's an exception.  Nussbaum claims,

"Thus, rather than having a simple dichotomy between the emotional and (normatively) rational, we have a situation in which all emotions are to some degree "rational" in a descriptive sense - all are to some degree cognitive and based upon belief - and they may then be assessed, as beliefs are assessed, for their normative status,”

which means that a person cannot separate their emotions from their rational.  The two are connected.  She illustrates this claim through an example of anger.  If one is mad it is based upon the belief that someone else has wronged them in some way.  Therefore, the anger is directed at someone or thing and if the person’s perception changes (what they did to me was an accident), then the person’s emotions will change as well or be redirected to something or someone else.

Though Nussbaum argument makes sense for most situations, it doesn’t always ring true because people sometimes feel certain emotions for no particular reason.  My family will be the first to tell people that I can be a bit of a downer at times.  I don’t know why, but every now and again I become the biggest pessimist you’ve seen in your life.  It is not an uncommon event that I wake up in the morning in a pissy mood.  Everything I see or encounter ticks me off.  I’m disgusted with everything for no principal reason.

One time I was having a Debbie downer day.  As I walked across campus on my way to work I saw a boy pass me who pissed me off.  Why?  He was ugly.  I looked at this guy and thought to myself, “GOD! It doesn’t make any sense for anybody to be that ugly,” and was truly disturbed that an ugly person like he was allowed to walk around campus.

Now, I normally don’t behave in the above manner, but because of my mood my emotions were swayed to an unstable level.  So then the next question would be, why was I in such a bad mood?  There is honestly no reason.  Nussbaum should have taken other factors into account when studying the emotions.  One’s mood may affect their emotions, but the mood may not be rational at all.