Man - a creatura of dialogue

Abstract

The word dialogue is most often understood to mean discussion, conversing. The sages of old understood that man is a creature who possesses logos. The logos of which they spoke can be translated as reason – as expressed in the classic formulation that man is an animal with sapience (homo est animal rationale). However, logos can simply mean language. What is language? Firstly, it is the media, a means of communication. In language man confronts himself, through language he is able to meet his fellow human being, to gain an understanding of the matter which surrounds him an the world in which he lives. Certainly, without language a world-wide communication network which increasingly determines our modern way of life would not be possible. Still, communication is not related only to language. People communicate by means of all that they say as well as all that they do not say: their tone of voice, the speed at which they speak, body language… all of which are in a sense words, speech – conversation. For this reason we can say that man is a creature of communication and relationship, simply said, a creature of dialogue. Dialogue is his ontological, transcendental dimension which marks his yesterday, today and forever. With this in mind, the author puts forward five theses, as follows: 1. One cannot talk about man without talking about his environment at the same time: this is dialogue as a relationship in the biological and psychological sense. 2. One cannot talk about man without talking about the types of communities in which he lives and his understanding of relationships: this is dialogue as a relationship from a sociological and cultural perspective. 3. It is not possible to talk about man without also talking about his individuality and his being always directed toward human relationships: dialogue as a relationship from an anthropological-philosophical viewpoint. 4. It is not possible to talk about man without also talking about his relationship to God: dialogue as a relationship from Christian-theological perspective. 5. One cannot talk about man without at the same time talking about his ethical task: dialogue as a relationship from an ethical task: dialougue as a relationship from an ethical point of view.