A paper on Heidegger’s “mitsein” and Levinas’ “the face.”
The world nowadays is very open to changes that the technology offers. The evolution of world’s adaptation to the present time is rapid that in every moment or even every second there are things created and improved. Language, communication, industries, agriculture, and transportation are the elements in the world that affect the lives of the people. Living in the world where all aspects of life are rapidly dynamic and unending changes can create unfocused, restless, and being unaware of the things that are important in social aspects of life.
Communication is one of the elements of the world that was highly developed and affected by the great evolution of technology. It is the communication that can make people be with each other and face each other’s body. Being humans, we are given by God the responsibility to create relationships in physical and communicative ways. There are many kinds of communication and it is a process, communication may be verbal, written or through signs, emotions can give realistic and relational meanings to the people who are communicating. Facebook is one of the computer mediated communications, where through the use of a computer connected through the internet even how far around the earth a person is he/she can connect to the other on the other side. The connection of people using the face book is in the internet that the internet passes the message of the person typing on the commuter and being read by the recipient in return the recipient types his/her feedback of message to the giver of the message. Facebook has also an application where pictures and videos can be posted and uploaded in the internet that the people connected through it can see each other picture. Thus face book have bad effects, especially in relationships, in the real presence of the people in communication, and physically connectedness of people with each other.
Heidegger’s philosophy “Mitsein,” or “being with” focused in the being together of people. “Mitsein” is a verb, an act that should be acted, the being with each other of a person to another person. The subject must act considering the presence others. It is a task of a person to be with others for his/her life and the lives of others are revolving on one world. Relationship develops in the “mitsein” physical and active presence is very important in “mitsein”. A person cannot totally separate itself to others except though death. In communication in the philosophy of Heidegger “mitsein” or being with, physical and person to person relationship is every important. Thus facebook as a CMC does not promote a physical and relational relation to people communicating with each other. Facebook only promotes a person to computer engagement. Even though that a person connects to the other side of the world with another person, physical presence of each other is missing. Facebook does not promote intimate and emotional relationships, facebook when used as medium of communication, it does not portray the real feelings and emotions of the persons communicating with each other. How can person act as being with if the other that should be present is not directly present for only the internet and the computer are the medium of connection in communication.
Levinas, in his philosophy “the face” would like to show the importance of the other as totally other. This totally other means that the “other” is an “alien” a separate being from me but we are the same as human beings. The body of the other is solely existing, yet we exist for each other. “The face” is the one that is a very important variable in the communication process in creating relationship. “The face” does not only mean that in communion, the face to face experience is needed, but in the “face” of Levinas face means that the whole personality of a person is being counted as person to person communication. In the “face” there is also what Levinas called infinite responsibility. Infinite responsibility of a person means that in the time a person meets the other as “the face” he has the responsibility to answer the call to be with that person. The least as person could give in the “face” for Levinas is the offering of his/hers presence to the “face” of the other. Facing the other as “the face,” the responsibility is always calling for presence as if begging ‘be for me” or helping others in their problems. In answering the others “face” a person who engages his/her self to offer or answering even only in mere presence, the person who answered is moral and had done a moral act. The alien or the totally other the others are, the great responsibility the “face” is asking, and infinite responsibility follows, the more alien others are the more responsibility we have to answer the “face” and to know more others. Being human we have the infinite responsibility to others in creating relationships and to relate to each other, and if we simply do not exercise our being humans. In facebook it does not give space to a communicative relationship as “face” to “face” relationship. How can a person could practise his/her infinite relationship to the “face” if they do not communicate even face to face.
Thus face book is not at all a good source of communication in the social relational and responsible relationship. It does not promote “face” to “face” communication and does not experiencing others physical presence. How can we be a community in communication without “being with” and the “face” of the other? We must communicate to other human through a human to human relationship as an experience of our being human in humanity.
The world nowadays is very open to changes that the technology offers. The evolution of world’s adaptation to the present time is rapid that in every moment or even every second there are things created and improved. Language, communication, industries, agriculture, and transportation are the elements in the world that affect the lives of the people. Living in the world where all aspects of life are rapidly dynamic and unending changes can create unfocused, restless, and being unaware of the things that are important in social aspects of life.
Communication is one of the elements of the world that was highly developed and affected by the great evolution of technology. It is the communication that can make people be with each other and face each other’s body. Being humans, we are given by God the responsibility to create relationships in physical and communicative ways. There are many kinds of communication and it is a process, communication may be verbal, written or through signs, emotions can give realistic and relational meanings to the people who are communicating. Facebook is one of the computer mediated communications, where through the use of a computer connected through the internet even how far around the earth a person is he/she can connect to the other on the other side. The connection of people using the face book is in the internet that the internet passes the message of the person typing on the commuter and being read by the recipient in return the recipient types his/her feedback of message to the giver of the message. Facebook has also an application where pictures and videos can be posted and uploaded in the internet that the people connected through it can see each other picture. Thus face book have bad effects, especially in relationships, in the real presence of the people in communication, and physically connectedness of people with each other.
Heidegger’s philosophy “Mitsein,” or “being with” focused in the being together of people. “Mitsein” is a verb, an act that should be acted, the being with each other of a person to another person. The subject must act considering the presence others. It is a task of a person to be with others for his/her life and the lives of others are revolving on one world. Relationship develops in the “mitsein” physical and active presence is very important in “mitsein”. A person cannot totally separate itself to others except though death. In communication in the philosophy of Heidegger “mitsein” or being with, physical and person to person relationship is every important. Thus facebook as a CMC does not promote a physical and relational relation to people communicating with each other. Facebook only promotes a person to computer engagement. Even though that a person connects to the other side of the world with another person, physical presence of each other is missing. Facebook does not promote intimate and emotional relationships, facebook when used as medium of communication, it does not portray the real feelings and emotions of the persons communicating with each other. How can person act as being with if the other that should be present is not directly present for only the internet and the computer are the medium of connection in communication.
Levinas, in his philosophy “the face” would like to show the importance of the other as totally other. This totally other means that the “other” is an “alien” a separate being from me but we are the same as human beings. The body of the other is solely existing, yet we exist for each other. “The face” is the one that is a very important variable in the communication process in creating relationship. “The face” does not only mean that in communion, the face to face experience is needed, but in the “face” of Levinas face means that the whole personality of a person is being counted as person to person communication. In the “face” there is also what Levinas called infinite responsibility. Infinite responsibility of a person means that in the time a person meets the other as “the face” he has the responsibility to answer the call to be with that person. The least as person could give in the “face” for Levinas is the offering of his/hers presence to the “face” of the other. Facing the other as “the face,” the responsibility is always calling for presence as if begging ‘be for me” or helping others in their problems. In answering the others “face” a person who engages his/her self to offer or answering even only in mere presence, the person who answered is moral and had done a moral act. The alien or the totally other the others are, the great responsibility the “face” is asking, and infinite responsibility follows, the more alien others are the more responsibility we have to answer the “face” and to know more others. Being human we have the infinite responsibility to others in creating relationships and to relate to each other, and if we simply do not exercise our being humans. In facebook it does not give space to a communicative relationship as “face” to “face” relationship. How can a person could practise his/her infinite relationship to the “face” if they do not communicate even face to face.
Thus face book is not at all a good source of communication in the social relational and responsible relationship. It does not promote “face” to “face” communication and does not experiencing others physical presence. How can we be a community in communication without “being with” and the “face” of the other? We must communicate to other human through a human to human relationship as an experience of our being human in humanity.
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