Thursday, September 25, 2014

Paige Bier_25 Sept._Student Choice II: Buber Reflection

For this blog of my choosing, I would like to discuss the realm of I and You introduced by Martin Buber to define whether or not my sister is a subject or an object. The realm of I and You says that “Whoever says You does not have something; he has nothing” (p. 55). You must relate back to the excerpt on page 54 in relations to the something in order to decipher whether or not you are a subject or an object. The realm of I and You claims, “You has no borders”; therefore, if you have borders or limitations, you have something” (p. 55). These borders reside as our limitations and boundaries between our subjects or objects. We discussed in class that these borders could be boundaries around how well we know someone.


For example, my sister Kassandra Bier can be a subject or an object. I have known my sister since the day I was born, meaning I should know her better than anyone else. However, she will always be limitedly defined because no one can truly be known infinitely. Reddick asks, “Even if we know someone, we can refer to him or her as he and she—how is that more like an object than subject?” Although I would never consider my sister an object, I am guilty of referring to her as just that. By using the third person, she is just another “he” or “she”. We learned from Reddick, “He or she is not there when you treat them as an object”. I couldn’t help but tie a distinction between Reddick’s statements to every day rumors. The only reason rumors or gossip exists is because people become objects and stop being subjects. When “he” or “she” is not there in conversation—whether positive or negative— they are no longer before me. This relates to Buber’s connection to art when he says, “the form that confronts me I cannot experience nor describe; I can only actualize it” (p. 61). When we refer to someone in third person, you can’t actually experience nor describe them.

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