Epistemology and Being-for-otherness Relationship with Culture

First, epistemologically, people are the product of a-posteriori encounters interpreted through innate mechanisms within us. For instance, before me is a horizontal square connected to four vertical parts in each corner holding it up, because I have seen this object before and someone has linked the word “table” to it, I understand this object to be a table. My experience of the criterion for an object to be a table, when applied to the object classifies it under the heading of table. Other people through their experiences might classify it as other things, based on the unique features that they see in the object.  For example, in Eskimo culture, they have 24 words for snow[1]. This is because they pick out different qualities in snow, its shape, size, etc. that distinguishes between different forms of what we call snow. Cultural and linguistic filters enable us to notice certain things about an object and not others. The language of a culture therefore contributes to the perspective members of that culture have with regard to reality. Therefore, because I always lived in United States culture, it has skewed my view of reality to be in conformity with it, through a variety of ways dealt with in this paper.  However, because of innate mechanisms within me, to a certain extent I can be a unique person within the culture and transform the United States culture.

Second, with regard to human relations, embedded within our very existence is a being-for-otherness. “The Lord God said, “It is not good for man to be alone” Genesis 2:18 (The JPS Bible), people were created to live in community with one another, caring for one another to the very extent of denying oneself for the purposes of the other. These relationships make us who we are, as they are a part of our a-posteriori encounters, but also in that, they show us who we are in the comparison. I can only know that I have a particular quality if another person has a quality that is different from my own. These relationships provide meaning to life as people seek to serve others in what they do.  Everyone therefore has a need to belong, to have a relationship with another human being. Often in order to meet the need a commonality must exist between the parties, perhaps this might be a common interest or experience.  In the United States, the unifying factor is the “American dream” myth; this is the belief that anyone can make it in the United States if one just tries hard enough. Therefore, to participate in the culture of the United States one must be individualistic, working towards their own betterment by investing their time to a particular task.  There is a constant push towards progress and productivity. One has the choice either to participate and belong within this culture or fall under a culturally derogatory label and left behind (ex. welfare recipients). Culture, therefore, plays an essential role in our epistemology and relationships. Such an essential role that the values of the culture often become values we find in ourselves.

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[1] Fay, Brian. Contemporary Philosophy of Social Sciences. (Malden Massachusetts.: Blackwell Publishers., 1996)  78