I and Thou

I and Thou

What exactly is a soul mate? What does this mean, and how do we know if we have found the one we are supposed to live with for the rest of our lives? Is it an instant feeling that you have for another, or is it an instant response and action you have with another? Martin Buber spent much of his life determining questions such as this, yet in a more concise manner. Buber focused on the relationship of man with man and what it ought to be, or perhaps could be. "The relation can obtain even if the human being to whom I say You does not hear it in his experience. For You is more than It knows. No deception reaches this far: here is the cradle of actual life" ( Buber, 1970, p.59). This quote comes from Martin Buber's book I and Thou and is, in essence, connected to his Theory of Dialogue. In class we briefly went over Buber's definition of dialogue and his explanations of an I-Thou dialogue versus an I-It monologue. However, Buber's Theory of Dialogue is the foundation of his theory of human existence. intimacy. The I-Thou dialogue is the definition of intimacy. In this paper I will be addressing Buber's Theory of Dialogue and the applications his theory has on every human being's intimate relationships. I will apply Buber's theory to my personal situation and critique the theory's strengths and weaknesses. I will also explain how this theory relates to humanistic and scientific standards, and ultimately explain the significance of Buber's theory.

First, it is necessary to receive some sort of comprehension on the different dimensions of Buber's theory. There are two main dimensions that Buber writes about. The preferable relationship, according to Buber, is the I-Thou relationship. Yet, in order to have the I-Thou rel...

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... to be this way: that is what choice is for. All in all, I respect Buber's theories and hope to live up to them the best way that I can. I would like to end with a simple quote from Buber (1970) that, I feel, is inspirational considering the argued difficulties of his theories:

Believe in the simple of magic of life, in service in the universe, and it will dawn on you what this waiting, peering, 'stretching of the neck' of the creature means. Every word must falsify; but look, thing beings live around you, and no matter which one you approach you always reach Being ... all actual life is encounter (p.67).

References

Buber, M. (1970). I and Thou. (W. Kaufmann, Trans.). New York: Charles Scribners's Sons. (original work never published in U.S.: written in 1937)

Friedman, M. (1960). Martin Buber, The Life of Dialogue. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press.