The way we understand community fundamentally structures the way we approach justice. In opposition to totalizing structures of justice founded upon an ontological conception of community, Emmanuel Levinas conceives the possibility of a political or social structure of difference. I argue that the conceptions of community presented by Kant and Heidegger, either as a harmonious, unified being in common, or as a common-identity disclosed beneath the ontological horizon of being-with, necessarily leads to violence. This violence is reflected in the forms of justice instantiated by these philosophies, which privilege the ‘light’ of the universal over the particularity of individuals in the face-to-face encounter, ultimately corrupting and nullifying one’s anarchic moral responsibility for the Other. The intent of this thesis is to argue that justice can only remain just if it is seen, not on the basis of a communal ‘light’ that absorbs, integrates, and incorporates the Other as an element of a system, but as founded on the anarchic responsibility of the one-for-the-Other. Justice, I will show, cannot be seen as an aim of a community—complete and self-sufficient—in achieving an end, but as a rupture, a disturbance, as a call made among a multitude of particular, unique Others by which ethics (the face-to-face) is fundamental.

Ce mémoire propose une analyse de la souffrance dans le dernier ouvrage majeur d’Emmanuel Levinas, Autrement qu’être (1974). Notre recherche vise à exposer le rôle déterminant de la souffrance dans l’ouverture à une signification qui transcende l’être et à démontrer la pertinence d’une conception de la responsabilité enracinée dans une interprétation intersubjective de la souffrance. Le premier chapitre examine le double rôle de la souffrance comme affect préréflexif du corps et comme modalité par laquelle cette dimension affective se refuse à la thématisation. Dans le deuxième chapitre, nous considérons le rôle de la souffrance au sein d’une herméneutique du sujet en détaillant l’influence de la tradition hébraïque sur la pensée de Levinas. En portant une attention particulière à la notion de substitution, pièce centrale de l’oeuvre, nous verrons que la souffrance constitue une orientation éthique de la subjectivité. Finalement, dans le troisième chapitre, nous interrogeons la portée d’une éthique constituée à partir de l’intersubjectivité de la souffrance. En discutant de sa conception du témoignage et du messianisme, nous démontrons que chez Levinas la souffrance est mobilisée pour ancrer la responsabilité éthique dans un sujet matériellement impliqué dans sa rencontre avec l’autre. / This dissertation offers an analysis of suffering in Emmanuel Levinas's last major work, Otherwise than Being (1974). Our research aims to expose the critical role of suffering in opening a meaning that transcends being and to demonstrate the relevance of a conception of responsibility rooted in an intersubjective interpretation of suffering. The first chapter examines the dual role of suffering as a pre-reflective affect of the body and as a modality through which this affective dimension refuses to be thematized. In the second chapter, we consider the role of suffering within a hermeneutics of the subject by detailing the influence of the Hebrew tradition on Levinas's thought. By paying particular attention to the notion of substitution, the central piece of the work, we will see that suffering constitutes an ethical orientation of subjectivity. Finally, in the third chapter, we question the scope of an ethics constituted from the intersubjectivity of suffering. By discussing his conception of testimony and messianism, we demonstrate that for Levinas suffering is mobilized to anchor ethical responsibility in a subject materially involved in his encounter with the other.

Text in German, summaries in German and English / Diese Masterarbeit handelt von Transzendenzmomenten angesichts des Anderen und nimmt damit Bezug auf einen der einflussreichsten Philosophen der Gegenwart, Emmanuel Levinas. Philosophiegeschichtlich bildet der linguistic turn den Kontext dieses Diskurses. So wird der Wandel im Denken, der mit dem linguistic turn einhergeht, anhand verschiedener philosophischer und theologischer Essays reflektiert und auf das Problem der Gewalt im Prozess des Erkennens hin zugespitzt. In Diskussion mit den Schriften Dietrich Bonhoeffers leistet diese Arbeit hinfort einen Beitrag zum systematisch-theologischen Diskurs über Gottesoffenbarung in zwischenmenschlichen Beziehungen und über Ethik. In Auseinandersetzung mit Levinas und Bonhoeffer baut diese Arbeit eine Brücke zwischen postmodernem, dekonstruktivistischem Denken und der fortwährenden theologischen Aufgabe, Gottes Sein mittels menschlicher Sprache Ausdruck zu verleihen. / This master thesis is about moments of transcendence in face of the other by means of one of the most important philosophers in our days, Emmanuel Levinas. The philosophically based historical context is represented by the term linguistic turn which marks a change of thinking within the 20th century. To outline this change the thesis brings several philosophical and theological essays up for discussion which leads to the problem of power in the process of recognition. Bringing up Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s writings, this research will make a contribution to the systematic-theological discourse about God revealing himself within relationships and about ethics. Furthermore it builds a bridge between postmodern anti-constructivist thinking and the continual theological task of using human language to explore God’s being. / Philosophy, Practical and Systematic Theology / M. Th. (Systematic Theology)

This thesis provides an historical and intellectual summary of the role of the concepts of 'substance,' and 'participation,' in the making of the doctrine of the Trinity. In the concluding chapter, a study is made of the assumptions of deconstruction, which are somewhat hostile to a substance paradigm. We argue for an appreciation of the importance of both substance and participation for the Trinity, and philosophy generally. Chapters are dedicated to individuals who have in some way contributed to perceptions of these two terms, as they pertain to the Christian notion of the Trinity. Additionally, we seek to define some philosophical problems that accompany a Trinitarian metaphysics of 'substance,' and 'participation.' The problems include those of deconstruction: issues such as 'Logocentrism,' and 'Presence.' Finally, we investigate how Trinitarian ontology can provide answers to many of the questions Derrida raises conceming the problematic future of metaphysical thinking. / Philosophy and Systematic Theology / M.Th. (Systematic Theology)

Thesis (MA (Psychology))--University of Stellenbosch, 2005. / Psychology as a human science is rendered desperate by the human vacuum in its own contents. This paper argues that by adopting the methods and techniques of the natural sciences, psychology and psychotherapy not only transform the patient or client into an a-historical and a-social entity, but also propose an utopian view of reality and lose the inherent moral character of the psychotherapeutic endeavour. It seems as if the Post-Modern theoretical and psychotherapeutic alternatives do not offer a solution that solves the above mentioned problems. This paper aims to introduce the work of the French philosopher Emmanuel Levinas, as a stimulus providing a different starting point in the search for solutions to the mentioned problems. Such an approach seeks to understand the radically ethical character of the therapeutic meeting by recognising the fundamental responsibility of the therapist, not to “totalise” (that is to reduce) otherness (the not me) into sameness (the for me) by assigning differences into pre-established characteristics, properties and categories. Only by recognising the otherness of the client in the “face-to-face meeting” and reacting to the call of the other can psychotherapy be ethical and render justice to historical and social situatedness of the other facing us in therapy. Some of the implications that the ethical challenge of Levinas holds for psychology will be explored. This includes the implications for the therapeutic meeting, psychological ethics, and the possibility of a “Levinasanian psychology”.

本篇論文試圖以列維納斯之倫理哲學、傅科和薩依德的觀點來分析、討論譚恩美的小說《百種神秘感》。小說透過兩種敘述的並置，描繪同父異母兩姊妹—中國出生的李關與美國長大的葉奧莉薇—之間的關係，以及一趟迷人的穿越時空之旅。譚恩美藉由這故事傳達她對倫理議題中「他者」的關懷。由於西方哲學及認識論傳統自柏拉圖以降便將「我思」的想法視為靈魂與自我的對話，認為一切真理皆在自身之中。在這樣的思想體系架構下，「他者」被視為暫時脫離但最終將被「同一」（「自我」）給同化的客體。易言之，「他者」的「他性」（或「無限性」）在「同一」的「整體」之中是可被壓制、吸納。大體而言，西方哲學其實是一門有關自戀的「同一」、而非有關真正「他者」的知識。 正是在這樣的哲學背景之下，《百種神秘感》探索許多知識所蘊含有關「整體」的論述暴力，比如心理學、西方醫藥論述及歷史學。同樣地，小說也批判了許多跨文化關係當中所表現出的「整體」暴力。在小說中，西方人透過東方主義式的觀點看待非西方人及他者的文化，並建構出一系列簡化的二元對立概念—西方與東方、文明與野蠻、自我與他者等。列維納斯反對這種不公平且充滿暴力的西方哲學傳統，是以他提出了肯定「他者」之「他性」的倫理哲學。在倫理關係中「自我」與「他者」兩者和平共存；兩者之間有關係但各自獨立。「自我」的主體性因「他者」的存在而建立，因而是為「他者」服務的。在倫理關係中「自我」對「他者」負有責任。藉由列維納斯、傅科和薩依德的觀點，本論文將探討《百種神秘感》中人際關係與文化交流間的他者倫理意涵。 / This thesis aims to investigate Amy Tan’s The Hundred Secret Senses in terms of Emmanuel Levinas’s ethical philosophy, Michel Foucault’s discursive theory and Edward Said’s observations about Orientalism. Through the use of juxtaposition of two narratives, the novel depicts the relationship between two half sisters, Chinese-born Kwan Li and Chinese American Olivia Yee, and a fascinating journey through time and space. By telling this amazing story, Tan expresses her serious concern for ethical issue of the Other. Western philosophy and epistemology have a tradition of totalizing thought. Plato regarded the “I think” thought as the dialogue of the soul with itself; truth was said to inhabit the soul. In western philosophical tradition, the Other is viewed as something that is temporarily separate from the Same (the Self) but is ultimately reconcilable with the Same. In other words, the otherness of the Other is assimilated and oppressed within the totality of the Same. Hence western philosophy is a knowledge about the narcissistic Same, rather than about genuine Other. The Hundred Secret Senses explores the discursive violence of totality in various knowledges such as psychology, medicine, and history. Likewise, the novel also depicts the violence of totality in intercultural relationships. The westerners in the novel tend to view non-westerners and their culture in an Orientalist way, in which a series of constructed opposites are adopted—West/Orient; Civilized/Barbaric; We/They. Against this violent and unjust tradition in western philosophy, Levinas advocates an ethical philosophy, in which the Other is affirmed in his otherness. In the Levinasian ethical relationship, the Self and the Other are viewed as separate but connected terms; neither is assimilated into or confused with the other. Ethical relationship is the coexistence of Totality and Infinity (otherness). Subjectivity of the Self is awakened by the presence of the Other; hence its essence is for the Other. In ethical relationship the Self has responsibility for the Other. Through the perspectives of Levinas, Foucault and Said, the thesis will also scrutinize the ethical meaning of interpersonal relations and cultural exchanges in The Hundred Secret Senses.

Cette thèse se concentre sur ce que j'appelle «l’espace négatif» de la représentation dans la poésie de Stevens comme étant un véritable espace d'engagement politique, une interprétation qui se distingue de la plus grande partie de la critique sur Stevens. En suivant les écrits philosophiques d'Emmanuel Levinas, j'affirme que l'emphase que Stevens place sur la représentation de la représentation elle-même ouvre un espace au-delà des limites rigides de l'identité-ce que Levinas appelle « le je [sujet] semblable », permettant un contact authentique avec « l'Autre» ainsi qu’avec le concept de « l'infini ». Bien que Stevens s’est farouchement opposé à la notion Romantique de la sublime transcendance, c’est-à-dire d'un espace censé exister en dehors des limites de l'imagination humaine, il se concerne néanmoins avec l'exploration d'un espace au-delà de l'identité individuelle. Pour Stevens, cependant, « la transcendance» est toujours, nécessairement, liée par les restrictions reconnues du langage humain et de l'imagination, et donc par la réalité du monde perceptible. Toute « transcendance» qui est recherchée ou atteinte, dans la poésie de Stevens ne devrait donc pas - ma thèse affirme - être entendu dans le sens sublime déterminé auparavant par les Romantiques. Une connexion plus appropriée peut plutôt être faite avec la transcendance concrète et immédiate décrit par Lévinas comme le «face à face ». L’attention que Stevens accordent aux notions concrètes et immédiates est souvent exprimé à travers son attention sur les qualités esthétiques de la langue. Sa poésie a en effet la poésie pour sujet, mais pas dans le sens solipsiste qui lui est souvent attribué. En se concentrant sur le processus actif et créateur inhérent à l'écriture et à la lecture de la poésie, Stevens explore la nature de l'Etre lui-même. Je compare cette exploration dans le travail de Stevens à celle du dessinateur, ou de l'artiste, et dans ma conclusion, je suggère les liens entre l'approche d'enquête de Stevens et celle d’artistes visuels contemporains qui se sont également engagés à la figuration du processus créatif. L’ artiste sud-africain William Kentridge est mon exemple principal , en raison de sa conviction que la méthode est intrinsèquement liée à l'engagement politique et social. / This dissertation focuses on what I refer to as a “negative-space” of representation in the poetry of Wallace Stevens’s in order to explore what, contrary to the bulk of Stevens research to date, I understand to be a genuine politics of engagement. Drawing on the philosophical writings of Emmanuel Levinas, I argue that Stevens’s emphasis on the representation of representation itself opens up a space beyond the rigid limitations of identity—what Levinas refers to as the “I of the same”—allowing genuine contact with the concept of “the infinite,” or “the Other.” Though Stevens staunchly opposed himself to the Romantic notion of sublime transcendence—of a space purported to exist outside the limits of the human imagination—he nonetheless concerns himself with the exploration of just such a space “beyond” individual identity. For Stevens, however, “transcendence” is always, necessarily, bound by the acknowledged restrictions of human language and imagination and therefore by the reality of the perceivable world. Any “transcendence” that is sought, or achieved, in Stevens’s work should not, therefore, be understood in the sublime sense intended by the earlier Romantics—a more apt connection can instead be made with the concrete and immediate transcendence described by Levinas as the “face to face.” Stevens’s concern for the concrete and the immediate is often expressed through his attention to the aesthetic qualities of language. His is indeed a poetry about poetry—but not in the limited, solipsistic sense that is often assumed. In concentrating on the active, creative process inherent to writing and reading poetry, Stevens explores the nature of Being itself. I compare this exploration in Stevens’s work to that of the draftsman, or to the artist’s sketch, and in my conclusion suggest the connections between Stevens’s investigative approach and contemporary visual artists who are also committed to the figuration of the creative process. South African artist William Kentridge provides my chief example, due to his conviction that the method is linked intrinsically to political and social engagement.

In this thesis I explore the relation in Buber's and Levinas's understanding. Both of these Jew philosophers endeavoured to describe an essence of genuine dialogue and both saw in dialogue the word that turns to a Thou, the primal deed of spirit. Nevertheless in spite of these similarities there are also a differences in their understanding of a dynamics within the genuine dialogue. Whereas Buber talks about a reciprocity in such a relation Levinas asserts that there is an asymmetry there and therefore he radicalizes Buber's conception and responsibility towards the other. In the first part of my thesis I focus on important influences on Buber's and Levinas' lives and introduce a "poetics" of their understanding of a genuine dialogue based particularly on their main piece of work: Buber's I and Thou and Levinas's Totality and Infinity. Although there was a communication between these two thinkers according to some philosophers it often exhibited a lack of dialogue and a failure to understand each other. Therefore I outline the similarities and differences in detail in the final chapters. Keywords Buber, Levinas, Rosenzweig, I - Thou relationship, face, reciprocity, asymmetry, responsibility, ethics, infinity

Representations of female characters in cinema have the effect of othering the female in front of the viewer’s gaze. Women’s characters are constructed along the lines of their gender and race difference. In this paper I focus entirely on the character of the woman domestic worker in four films: Ilo Ilo, The Second Mother, The Maid, and At Home. The paper aims to provide a different reading of this mostly trivialized character and rethink its otherness by pinpointing it in biopolitical labor and homes of biopower, namely of affect and oppression. I am interested in how labor can reconfigure the domestic space to a heterotopia, or what I call a ‘heterooikos’, which is the space occupied by the other. Finally, I will attempt an analysis that reimagines otherness captured by cinema, by locating, in the film text, techniques of resistance as a countersuggestion to techniques of character identification. My aim is to provide a different way to interact with subaltern subjects in film by recognizing otherness as part of an ethical response.

Made available in DSpace on 2015-04-14T13:55:08Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 386392.pdf: 545018 bytes, checksum: 64964d5f790ec15256a5be3b9f5b817c (MD5) Previous issue date: 2007-01-10 / O presente trabalho tem por objetivo investigar a constitui??o da quest?o est?tica na obra de Levinas. Levinas apresenta uma austera cr?tica antiest?tica a partir da associa??o entre arte, exotismo e idolatria. A arte seria o campo do sil?ncio, da imagem, da est?tua e do retorno ao mesmo, o que se traduz em nega??o do sujeito e da ?tica. Por outro lado, Levinas sugere uma certa reden??o da arte atrav?s da cr?tica, fazendo convergir est?tica e ?tica. O presente trabalho pretende averiguar as recorr?ncias, continuidades, desdobramentos ou rupturas no trato da quest?o est?tica nos diversos textos de Levinas e toma como hip?tese a interpreta??o de que as valora??es positiva e negativa convivem ao longo de toda sua obra. No primeiro cap?tulo, enfatiza-se o car?ter de musicalidade da obra de arte e o fen?meno do exotismo; no segundo, sua plasticidade e o fen?meno da idolatria; no terceiro, os conceitos de obra e de cr?tica da arte como possibilidade de converg?ncia entre est?tica e ?tica.