A comparative study of other concept in accordance with the thoughts of Buber and Levinas

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Department of Educational Sciences, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Mazandaran, Iran.

2 PhD student in Philosophy of Education, University of Mazandaran, Iran.

10.48308/kj.2025.238650.1306

Abstract

The purpose of this research is to investigate the relationship between Buber’s and Levinas’s ideas by emphasizing the concept of otherness. Research has been conducted on various topics related to Buber’s and Levinas’s ideas in the field of moral philosophy. However, the relationship between them remains an ambiguous area of study. This research seeks to provide a comparative reflection on the concept of otherness according to the thoughts of these two philosophers. Based on the studies conducted, while Buber’s thoughts emphasize an I-Thou relationship that fosters a symmetrical, close, and reciprocal connection, Levinas highlights a face-to-face encounter characterized by an asymmetrical distance. Levinas criticizes Buber’s I-Thou relationship as insufficiently ethical because it prioritizes the self over the other in a self-centered process of formation. In fact, Levinas argues for the irreducible distance between the I and the Other, where the Other is no longer assimilated into the I or the self. According to Levinas’s thought, if, in encountering another, there is an expectation of reciprocal and equal treatment from the Other, one steps outside the ethical realm.

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References

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History

  • Receive Date: 05 February 2025
  • Revise Date: 13 March 2025
  • Accept Date: 15 March 2025

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