El rol fonamental de l'alteritat a l'experiència humana

Though the individual self has been extensively analyzed within a varied
range of disciplines and approaches, the meaning and experience of the «other» has
not been analyzed to the same extent. This communication aims to argue, with the
support of a significant number of theories in psychology, philosophy and sociology,
as well as with diverse elements of traditional worldviews, that the role of the «other»
is fundamental in human experience, with similar value to that of the self. The communication
offers a classification of the ways of conceiving alterity organized in four
categories of increasing relevance for human experience. Finally a tentative explanation
of the reasons of the neglect of otherness is provided and some consequences of
this neglect are analyzed