In which society do we want to live? What view of human dignity and which social and ethical values do we share? The paper, based on the book Dialogical Responsibility (Fink Publisher 2017), examines linguistic, cultural and social theories of German-Jewish scholars over a period of about 100 years – from the Wilhelmine Empire and the Weimar Republic until the Second World War and in the exile. At the heart of the matter is the question, how these scholars – who themselves lived between inclusio…
Read moreIn which society do we want to live? What view of human dignity and which social and ethical values do we share? The paper, based on the book Dialogical Responsibility (Fink Publisher 2017), examines linguistic, cultural and social theories of German-Jewish scholars over a period of about 100 years – from the Wilhelmine Empire and the Weimar Republic until the Second World War and in the exile. At the heart of the matter is the question, how these scholars – who themselves lived between inclusion and exclusion – envisioned the peaceful coexistence of different nations, confessions and social circles. They did not place their trust in juridical solutions; rather, their concepts testify to a dialogue-optimism that appreciated the encounters between humans and entrusted the acting and speaking individuals to make an effort fort he realization of equality, recognition, mutual understanding, sociability, tact, humor, love, and compassion, and entrusted the responsible coexistence to the acting and speaking actors.