The Magic of the Other: Sartre on our Relation with Others in Ontology and in Experience.
In: Sartre studies International, vol. 20 issue 2 Berghahn, 2014.
Abstract: Sartre's analysis of intersubjective relations through the look seems problematic for two reasons. First, it seems unable to give an account of intersubjectivity, and second, it does not seem to allow for an ethical relation with others. By distinguishing the look as an ontological conflict from its instantiation in experience, we will see that actually neither intersubjectivity nor an ethical relation toward a concrete other person are incompatible with this theory. Furthermore, we will see that my ontological conflict with the Other always makes its irruption in experience in the form of an emotion and we will look into what the presence of the Other adds to an emotion. That an emotion I have in front of the Other is directed toward my being-for-others, which escapes me per definition, has a peculiar consequence that we will explore, thereby revealing an understanding of complexes as narcissism or paranoia.
About the journal: Sartre Studies International is a peer-reviewed scholarly journal which publishes articles of a multidisciplinary, cross-cultural and international character reflecting the full range and complexity of Sartre's own work. It focuses on the philosophical, literary and political issues originating in existentialism, and explores the continuing vitality of existentialist and Sartrean ideas in contemporary society and culture.