The Collected Works of EDITH STEIN ON THE PROBLEM OF EMPATHY
Edith Stein the speaker is not comprehended in the u'ords. Rather, he is prehended at the same time as they. Nor does this at first play ry role in the words' meaning, but only when it points toward eir intuitive fulfillment. For example, in order to fulfill the eaning of a perceptual statement, I must put myself into the ker's orientation. 'Ihus the words can be considered entirely rhemselves without regarding the speaker and all that is going in him. Now what distinguishes the word from the signal? On the one nd, rve have the signaling thing, the circumstances of the pro- , the bridge that convention has thron'n betn'een them and t is perceivable as this "ought to indicate." The circumstances mselves remain entirely undisturbed by the fact that the signal esignates them. On the other hand, there is first of all no verbal hysical body fWortkiirperf corresponding to the signaling physirl body lSignalhArperl, only a verbal living body fWortleibl. The I expression could not exist by itself, and neither has it eived the function of a sign from the outside in addition to it is. Rather, it is ahvays the bearer of meaning in entirely the me manner n'hether the meaning is really there or whether it is vented. On the contrary, the signal is real. lf it is invented, its nction as a sign is merely invented, too, whereas there is no such ing as an invented meaning of u'ords. The living body and the I of a word form a living unity, but one permitting to both a latively independent development.l0T A signal cannot develop. nce it has received its designation it continues to convey it nchanged: and the function an act ofchoice has assigned to it, an t of choice can take au'ay again. Further, it only exists by reason f a creative act completed in it. But as soon as it exists it is vered and independent from this act like any product of human rtistry. lt can be destroyed and cease functioning u'ithout its creator" knou'ing anything about it. If a storm u'ashes au'ay all rail markers in the Riesengebirge, hikers will get lost. This can appen without the Riesengebirge Association, the creator of this 1'stem of signs, being responsible for this, since it believes they re still in the best condition. This cannot happen rr.ith a word, or it is alrvavs borne by a consciousness (which is naturally not hat of'him *,h,, i. speaking here and nou,). It lives "by the grace" C onstitution of the P sycho-Physical Indiuidual of a spirit (i.e., not by reason of the spirit's creative act, but in living dependence on it). The n'ord's bearer can be an individual subject but also a group of possibly changing subjects bound into one by a continuity of experience. Finally, we have the main difference: Words point to the object through the medium of meaning, while the signal has no meaning at all but only the function of being significant. And u'ords do not simply point to the circumstances as the signal does. What goes into them is not the circumstance, but its logico-categorical formation. Words do not signify, but express, and $'hat is expressed is no longer what it u'as before.l08 Naturally, this also applies when something psychic is expressed. Should someone say to me that he is sad, I understand ihe meaning of the words. The sadness I now knolv of is not an "alive one" before me as a perceptual givenness. It is probably as little like the sadness comprehended in the symbol as the table of u'hich I hear spoken is like the other side of the table which I see' ln one case I am in the apophantic sphere, the realm of propositions and meanings, in the other case in immediate intuitive contact with the objective sphere. Meaning is always a general one. In order to comprehend the object intinded right no'w, we always need a givenness of the intuitive basis of the meaning experiences. There is no such intermediate level between the expressed experience and the expressing bodily change. But meaning and symbol have something in common which forces them both to be called "expression" repeatedly. This is the fact that together they constitute the unity of an object, that the expression released from the connection $'ith r"hat ls expressed is no longer the same object (in contrast with the signaling physical body), that the expression proceeds out of the experiencer0e and adapts itself to the expressed material. These relationships are present in simple form in bodily expression; they are doubled in a certain sense in verbal expression: rvord, meaning, ob.ject; and, correlatively, having of the object, logical intention or meaning, and linguistic designation. The function of expressing, through u'hich I comprehend the expressed experience as the expression, is always fulfilled in the experiencein which expression proceeds from what is expressed' 8l
82 Edith Stent Wehavealreadyportrayedthisearlierandalsoused..expression" in a broadened sense. lnthecaseofunderstarrdingthisexperierrcirrgisnotprimordial, but empathized. Of course, we must distinguish^ bt'*:-t: verbal and bodily expression here' Understanding of a bodily expressionisbasedoncomprehendingthefore-ignlil'ingbody already interpreted as a |iving body of an ..1.,' project myself .l intotheforeignlivirrgbody,carryouttheexperiencealreadycogiven to me as empty with its countenance, and experlence tne experience ending irl this expression' As we saw, ou..ir-r neglect the speaking individual i. ttre word. I myself primordially comprehend the meaning of this ideal object in the understanding transition from word to meaning' And as long as I remain in this sphere, I do not need the foreign individualind do not have to empathically carry out his experiences with him. An rrrtuitive fulfillment of u'hat is intended is also possible through primordial experience' I can bring the circumstances of u,hich the statement speaks to givenness to myself. I hear the rvords, "It is raining," I understand them without considering that someone is saying them to me' And I bring this comprehension ro intuitive fllfifment wher-r I look out the wiI-rdou,'myself' only if I rvant to have the intuitioD on rvhich the speaker bases his statement and his full experience of expression, do I need empathy' Therefore, it should be clear that one does lrot arrive at experlence bv the path leading imnrediately fiom rerbal expression to ,.,"'.ar.ririg, thit the word, insofar as it has an ideal meaning. is not a symbol. But supPose that there are still other rvays to get to the rvord. The walto get to meaning is through the pure t1'pe of rhe rvord. Except perh"aps in solitary psr,chic life, we always find this rvordinsomekindofearthlycloak,inspeech,handwriting'or prirrt. The form can be unnoticed; but it can also push itself ibrward (for example, if it does not clearly reproduce the ct-,5 hearer, jtrst as all grt't'ttt'r'o the *ords intelligible. Fronl ]1,t substanti:rlly assist itr "t"i',,irt n,hat the u,ords mean in gener.r'1, r icrn point rr'e ct-rnrpr,'lr.'ttt'.,,j,.,o*. but 'rvhat ther. mein h''t:'.ll:;;;s svmbols in their inform:rtir q \\'ords can.ot be dr':lFr''*,=, ,tutt, because they do n,t. firt-r11 lunctiorts. either. This ts '',. f.,, c()mprehending this €Xpcrlellt q.l lhe onlv rror thr fiai11 lr't" '.e'cesarerrot comprehendedlrtl\e secondll. because thesr ' .l,;or.o,i't, arrd are also enrireli difft'rs'ords, but only frur ,1.'t," ."l.ijn i, sl,mbolically giren. At nr.r51 enrll' pres ented frorn, "'l',,]; ;lr; .*t Jrnulirution oJ self steps i nt o ,,ttecould sa1 that ill sl)('llh".'nl as an affecl d11es in an expressi\'e "" view with the same attittt:tt.^"' n.". th.-r.lves to which 16. lur()\en)ent. but not tll: '.,iif that irrfletti?tt ,t,d \l)ee(h restifies. \et il l5 "o.,f-.,.oting ..i:,r.'. rrord as an expressioil (the enrintonaticlrr are also a l):rrl,("1 ,"ro,-t. of tn. ,p..ah, the rising of tlre phasis placed on rhe.t'l'l'1,,]a'that rhese characteristics catr nsiclered earlit.r. tht' first lt'vel. This r",,t tl." (1)l'r> nr"a does nol pr,rceed f.ront^sc|1.r- I lrc appe.rrarrce ol l :('ll\r "r a prtlceeds lronr happirlsss. ()tt 1111' tiotrs in the u'a1 11'tu1 l;tttf',,, i. irr..if'.all1 different fiotr1 a t:attsal ,,thcr hanrl. rlre yrroct-.r'(ill:i;;. 11.,.,.. i, a differerrt relatiorr:hi1r seqtlence' As wt' sairl t'Jt,,.,r'tf-r^" bet.rveen exerti()ll and-bltrs[- betueett shame ,rd lrl,'tt' u,l announced in the lilrnr 1;1 rlrg. \\'lrilt' r'ausal relar i. rl r' "'r " "r""r. I3
- Page 3 and 4: vi Edith Stein 4. -I'he Controversy
- Page 5 and 6: l,,,n .n. undersrandi ,r,rlno.u.!r,
- Page 7 and 8: xiv Edith Stein problem of empathy
- Page 9 and 10: xvlll Edith Stein enological standp
- Page 11 and 12: xxii Edith Stein Tr an s I ato r' s
- Page 13 and 14: ON THE PROBLEM OF EMPATHY Foreword
- Page 15 and 16: 4 Edith Stein What t an be leli if
- Page 17 and 18: 8 Edith Stem primordially given, i'
- Page 19 and 20: I2> 12 Edith Stein physical individ
- Page 21 and 22: 16 Edith Stein Br.rt it seenls to m
- Page 23 and 24: 20 Edith Stein The Essence of Acts
- Page 25 and 26: 24 Edith Stein cheer me up.) Here,
- Page 27 and 28: 28 Edith Stein experiences we only
- Page 29 and 30: \JUl clearlt conscious motive for
- Page 31 and 32: Chapter III The Constitution of the
- Page 33 and 34: 40 Edith Stein soul. But, as we alr
- Page 35 and 36: 44 Edith Stein usually comes up in
- Page 37 and 38: 48 Edith Stein The psychic is in es
- Page 39 and 40: 2 Edith Stein f unloading very well
- Page 41 and 42: Edith Stein Constitution of the P s
- Page 43 and 44: Edith Stein by empathic presentatio
- Page 45 and 46: 62 Edith Stein as a physical bocly
- Page 47 and 48: 66 Edith Stein (h) The Foreign Liui
- Page 49 and 50: 7() 7'dith Stein n o n - p sy c h i
- Page 51 and 52: 74 Edith Stein C onstitution of the
- Page 53: 78 Edith stein Constitution of the
- Page 57 and 58: Edith Stein C onstitution of the P
- Page 59 and 60: Chapter IV Empathy as the Understan
- Page 61 and 62: 105> Edith Stein absolutely as the
- Page 63 and 64: 98 Edith Stein 3. The Constitution
- Page 65 and 66: 02 Edith Stein Empathy as the Under
- Page 67 and 68: 106 Edith Stein center or the "1" k
- Page 69 and 70: I l0 Edith Stein teristic:s to be d
- Page 71 and 72: ll4 Edith Stein Empatfu as the Unde
- Page 73 and 74: l 18 Edith Stein taken so literally
- Page 75 and 76: 1r, Edith Stein l{otes t23 phenomen
- Page 77 and 78: 2b Edith Stein ?q na cit..p.57f. '
- Page 79 and 80: 130 Edith Stein experiences is plai
- Page 81 and 82: 134 phenomenological reduction xiv,
82 Edith Stent<br />
Wehavealreadyportrayedthisearlierandalsoused..expression"<br />
in a broadened sense.<br />
lnthecase<strong>of</strong>understarrdingthisexperierrcirrgisnotprimordial,<br />
but empathized. Of course, we must distinguish^ bt'*:-t:<br />
verbal and bodily expression here' Understanding <strong>of</strong> a bodily<br />
expressionisbasedoncomprehendingthefore-ignlil'ingbody<br />
already interpreted as a |iving body <strong>of</strong> an ..1.,' project myself<br />
.l<br />
intotheforeignlivirrgbody,carryouttheexperiencealreadycogiven<br />
to me as empty with its countenance, and experlence tne<br />
experience ending irl this expression'<br />
As we saw, ou..ir-r neglect the speaking individual i. ttre word. I<br />
myself primordially comprehend the meaning <strong>of</strong> this ideal object<br />
in the understanding transition from word to meaning' And as<br />
long as I remain in this sphere, I do not need the foreign individualind<br />
do not have to empathically carry out his experiences with<br />
him. An rrrtuitive fulfillment <strong>of</strong> u'hat is intended is also possible<br />
through primordial experience' I can bring the circumstances <strong>of</strong><br />
u,hich the statement speaks to givenness to myself. I hear the<br />
rvords, "It is raining," I understand them without considering<br />
that someone is saying them to me' And I bring this comprehension<br />
ro intuitive fllfifment wher-r I look out the wiI-rdou,'myself'<br />
only if I rvant to have the intuitioD on rvhich the speaker bases his<br />
statement and his full experience <strong>of</strong> expression, do I need empathy'<br />
<strong>The</strong>refore, it should be clear that one does lrot arrive at experlence<br />
bv the path leading imnrediately fiom rerbal expression to<br />
,.,"'.ar.ririg, thit the word, ins<strong>of</strong>ar as it has an ideal meaning. is not a<br />
symbol. But supPose that there are still other rvays to get to the<br />
rvord. <strong>The</strong> walto get to meaning is through the pure t1'pe <strong>of</strong> rhe<br />
rvord. Except perh"aps in solitary psr,chic life, we always find this<br />
rvordinsomekind<strong>of</strong>earthlycloak,inspeech,handwriting'or<br />
prirrt. <strong>The</strong> form can be unnoticed; but it can also push itself<br />
ibrward (for example, if it does not clearly reproduce the ct-,5<br />
hearer, jtrst as all grt't'ttt'r'o the *ords intelligible. Fronl ]1,t<br />
substanti:rlly assist itr "t"i',,irt n,hat the u,ords mean in gener.r'1,<br />
r icrn point rr'e ct-rnrpr,'lr.'ttt'.,,j,.,o*.<br />
but 'rvhat ther. mein h''t:'.ll:;;;s svmbols in their inform:rtir q<br />
\\'ords can.ot be dr':lFr''*,=, ,tutt, because they do n,t. firt-r11<br />
lunctiorts. either. This ts '',.<br />
f.,, c()mprehending this €Xpcrlellt q.l<br />
lhe onlv rror thr fiai11 lr't" '.e'cesarerrot<br />
comprehendedlrtl\e<br />
secondll. because thesr<br />
' .l,;or.o,i't, arrd are also enrireli difft'rs'ords,<br />
but only frur ,1.'t," ."l.ijn i, sl,mbolically giren. At nr.r51<br />
enrll' pres ented frorn,<br />
"'l',,];<br />
;lr; .*t Jrnulirution oJ self steps i nt o<br />
,,ttecould sa1 that ill sl)('llh".'nl as an affecl d11es in an expressi\'e<br />
""<br />
view with the same attittt:tt.^"' n.". th.-r.lves to which 16.<br />
lur()\en)ent. but not tll: '.,iif that irrfletti?tt ,t,d<br />
\l)ee(h restifies. \et il l5 "o.,f-.,.oting<br />
..i:,r.'. rrord as an expressioil (the enrintonaticlrr<br />
are also a l):rrl,("1 ,"ro,-t. <strong>of</strong> tn. ,p..ah, the rising <strong>of</strong> tlre<br />
phasis placed on rhe.t'l'l'1,,]a'that rhese characteristics catr nsiclered earlit.r.<br />
tht' first lt'vel. This r",,t tl." (1)l'r><br />
nr"a does nol pr,rceed f.ront^sc|1.r-<br />
I lrc appe.rrarrce ol l :('ll\r "r a prtlceeds lronr happirlsss.<br />
()tt 1111'<br />
tiotrs in the u'a1 11'tu1 l;tttf',,, i. irr..if'.all1 different fiotr1 a t:attsal<br />
,,thcr hanrl. rlre yrroct-.r'(ill:i;;. 11.,.,.. i, a differerrt relatiorr:hi1r<br />
seqtlence' As wt' sairl t'Jt,,.,r'tf-r^" bet.rveen exerti()ll and-bltrs[-<br />
betueett shame ,rd lrl,'tt' u,l announced in the lilrnr 1;1<br />
rlrg. \\'lrilt' r'ausal relar i. rl r' "'r " "r""r.<br />
I3
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