Summary
Highlights
Emmanuel Levinas, a Lithuanian-French philosopher, revolutionized ethics by focusing on the face-to-face encounter with the 'Other' rather than rational principles or pain/pleasure. He argues that responsibility to the Other is immediate and precedes any moral imperatives, making ethics the 'first philosophy'.
Levinas defines the 'Other' as another human being who transcends one's own comprehension. The self cannot fully grasp the Other, as the Other is unique and cannot be assimilated into existing categories. Levinas emphasizes that the Other's alterity doesn't stem from distinguishing qualities, but from an irreducibility to the self. He also describes the Other as vulnerable, using terms like 'nakedness,' 'vulnerability,' and referring to them as 'the stranger, the widow, and the orphan.'
Levinas's work 'Totality and Infinity' critiques Western philosophy's tendency to reduce everything to a coherent whole ('totality'). He argues that applying this to human relationships makes the Other an object of the self's understanding, which he deems unethical. 'Infinity' represents how the Other transcends conceptual horizons, revealed through 'the face,' which resists possession and commands responsibility, demanding 'Thou shalt not kill.'
Unlike reciprocal relationships, Levinas posits an asymmetrical responsibility in the face-to-face encounter, where the self is infinitely obligated to the Other. This responsibility is pre-theoretical and cannot be captured by moral doctrines, it is an 'order not to abandon the other,' fulfilling one's ultimate duty and making ethics the first philosophy. In situations with multiple 'others,' Levinas suggests reason can be used to dispense justice.
Levinas's ethics centers on the significance of the transcendent Other, criticizing Western philosophy's attempts to apprehend them. The 'infinity' of the Other is revealed in the face, leading to an asymmetrical responsibility that precedes moral principles and is a fundamental duty of the self.