Lévinas és a politikai
Lévinas and the Political

Summary/Abstract: The present writing analyses the concept of the third in Emmanuel Lévinas’ thought and its role in the establishment of the deconstructionist ethico-political position. First, it provides a possible reconstruction of the criticised ’linear narrative’ of Lévinas’ thought following the main points of Ethics and Infinity. The second part examines the concept of the third in Totality and Infinity and in Otherwise than Being. It claims that in the Otherwise than being Lévinas introduces a change: the third becomes part of the quasi-phenomenological description of the face and the very reason for the restoration of the consciousness. The last part shows that Lévinas’ thought and the concept of the third can hardly be regarded as a theoretical foundation for society although they demand a society (Derrida). Some of the links between deconstruction and the ethical (Critchley) and the experiences of the deconstructivist-pragmatist meeting in Paris (Rorty) are also discussed. The train of thought concludes that before evaluating the significance of Lévinas’ thought for society it is important to gain a clear understanding of the structure of the restored consciousness, namely how the diachronic experience of others presents itself for the consciousness.

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