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Becoming Dialogue; Martin Buber's Concept of Turning to the Other As Educational Praxis

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Becoming Dialogue; Martin Buber's Concept of Turning to the Other As Educational Praxis BECOMING DIALOGUE; MARTIN BUBER'S CONCEPT OF TURNING TO THE OTHER AS EDUCATIONAL PRAXIS by Charles Scott Bachelor of Home Economics, University of British Columbia, 1983 DISSERTATION SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY In the Faculty of Education © Charles Scott 2011 SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY Spring 2011 All rights reserved. However, in accordance with the Copyright Act of Canada, this work may be reproduced, without authorization, under the conditions for Fair Dealing. Therefore, limited reproduction of this work for the purposes of private study, research, criticism, review and news reporting is likely to be in accordance with the law, particularly if cited appropriately. APPROVAL Name: Charles Scott Degree: Doctor of Philosophy Title of Thesis: Becoming dialogue; Martin Buber’s Concept of Turning to the Other as Educational Praxis Examining Committee: Chair: Dr. Robin Brayne Director, Graduate Programs, Faculty of Education ___________________________________________ Dr. Carolyn Mamchur, Professor Senior Supervisor ___________________________________________ Dr. Sean Blenkinsop, Assistant Professor Supervisor ___________________________________________ Dr. Celeste Snowber, Associate Professor [Internal - External] Examiner __________________________________________ Dr. Maurice Friedman, Professor Emeritus, San Diego State University [External] Examiner Date Defended/Approved: ___________________________________________ ii Declaration of Partial Copyright Licence The author, whose copyright is declared on the title page of this work, has granted to Simon Fraser University the right to lend this thesis, project or extended essay to users of the Simon Fraser University Library, and to make partial or single copies only for such users or in response to a request from the library of any other university, or other educational institution, on its own behalf or for one of its users. The author has further granted permission to Simon Fraser University to keep or make a digital copy for use in its circulating collection (currently available to the public at the “Institutional Repository” link of the SFU Library website <www.lib.sfu.ca> at: <http://ir.lib.sfu.ca/handle/1892/112>) and, without changing the content, to translate the thesis/project or extended essays, if technically possible, to any medium or format for the purpose of preservation of the digital work. The author has further agreed that permission for multiple copying of this work for scholarly purposes may be granted by either the author or the Dean of Graduate Studies. It is understood that copying or publication of this work for financial gain shall not be allowed without the author’s written permission. Permission for public performance, or limited permission for private scholarly use, of any multimedia materials forming part of this work, may have been granted by the author. This information may be found on the separately catalogued multimedia material and in the signed Partial Copyright Licence. While licensing SFU to permit the above uses, the author retains copyright in the thesis, project or extended essays, including the right to change the work for subsequent purposes, including editing and publishing the work in whole or in part, and licensing other parties, as the author may desire. The original Partial Copyright Licence attesting to these terms, and signed by this author, may be found in the original bound copy of this work, retained in the Simon Fraser University Archive. Simon Fraser University Library Burnaby, BC, Canada Last revision: Spring 09 ABSTRACT My intention is to outline dialogue as Martin Buber’s ontological turning to the other through the development of particular dialogical virtues: an ontological praxis of dialogue. This outline substantiates dialogue as an important element of educational praxis insofar as it fosters the development of genuine relationships with others and with the world and the uncovering and creation of meaning through awareness of what is sacred in us, others, and the world. An ontological orientation of being turned to the other can be developed through the conscious act of turning as both a way of life and as educational praxis; the movement of turning to the other constitutes becoming dialogue. Buber’s work provides us with the specific details of the art of turning to the other which can help us navigate our ways into dialogue. I also consider why we might engage in dialogue: what reasons justify dialogue and what propels us to it. The dissertation consists of three parts: a discussion of the ontological orientation and why it is valuable to us, a discussion of the art of turning to the other, and a concluding discussion of the educational implications. I conclude with a discussion of the role of reflective study and artistic and contemplative practices in developing the life of dialogue, closing with a discussion of issues surrounding the inclusion of dialogue in education. The heart of this dissertation rests in a detailed examination of this turning to the other— how it manifests in the specific virtues of dialogue that I will outline. I suggest these virtues can be developed through the engagements of a conscious and committed practice of dialogue: an educational praxis. Over time these actions become established as a part of beingness: the life of dialogue. Using Buber’s phrasings, the dialogical virtues I include are: becoming aware; confirmation of the other; an empathic inclusion of the other; being present; the “holy insecurity”; the “unity of the contraries”; and a “synthesizing apperception.” Keywords: Dialogue; Martin Buber; turning to the other; life of dialogue; I-Thou; education; pedagogy; educational relationships iii “We have to be concerned, to be troubled, not about the other side but about our own side, not about grace but about will. Grace concerns us in so far as we go out to it and persist in its presence; but it is not our object.” — Martin Buber, in I and Thou “We are not less serious about grace because we are serious about the human power of deciding, and through decision the soul finds a way which will lead it to grace.” — Martin Buber, “The Faith of Judaism” in Israel and the World iv DEDICATION To my father the doctor and researcher and my mother the Romantic, both of whom helped me fall in love with the world. v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Having written this manuscript, I now have a better appreciation for the "Acknowledgements" pages that authors compose. There are many people without whose support, input, and dialogue it would have been impossible to develop this work. I feel rarely fortunate. That support manifests in many forms: physical and material, intellectual, emotional, existential and spiritual, institutional, and includes both human and more-than-human realms. The process of developing a thesis has deepened my appreciation that I exist in a wonderfully complex ecology of support. John Donne had it right: we are not islands. Neither, it seems, are our works (I won't mention here being-ness as not solely our own: that's a topic of the dissertation itself), although I will do the noble thing and claim that all the errors are solely my own. First and foremost, I want to express my appreciation of the support of my wife, Judy Earl. Her support covered the entire range I mentioned above and it manifested itself daily—no small feat, that! She made significant sacrifices and responded with humour and good naturedly, even when the grad school process was trying for one or both of us. I cannot imagine how I could have completed this work without her considerable, compassionate backing and encouragement; vi I will always be grateful for her loyalty and love. From the bottom of my heart, thank you, Judy! My deepest thanks and gratitude go to Carolyn Mamchur, my supervisor. We connected from the first time we met and I marvelled at and have been so appreciative of her intuitive, artistic understanding of dialogue, both as a way of being and as praxis. Her guidance, both as mentor as friend, has been constant, affectionate, both engaging and challenging, and a source of inspiration. I think she will appreciate me saying that I have learned more from observing and being with her in a classroom—and, really, the world is her classroom—than from anything she has written. I have many treasured memories of classes with her, of conversations in her office, of wonderful engagements at her house with Judy and Mickey, and often others, and of work, conversation, and food at her cabin. Her love of teaching, of others, of the world, and her sometimes forthright sometimes deliciously humorous remarks have provided a legacy of delight. Carolyn, it has been an absolute delight working with you! Heesoon Bai also offered superb support, well beyond the call of duty, and it was because of her inspiration that I chose to apply to graduate studies in the faculty of education at SFU. Like Carolyn, she is a remarkable teacher and along with her warm and encouraging moral support she also offered incisive intellectual, moral, spiritual, and relational challenges--the kind that encouraged vii me to extend the boundaries of my thought, action, and being. She was always and unfailingly there for me. Her selfless and encompassing support extended well beyond the boundaries of institutional norms. She embodies the ideal of a philosopher as a lover of wisdom who tries to manifest that wisdom not just intellectually but in her entire life. She is not only thinking of the world, she is being with the world. Heesoon, thank you so much for all you have done and offered! Sean Blenkinsop has also provided encouraging support. He was always willing to talk about Buber's work and his encyclopaedic knowledge, not only of Buber's life and work, but also of educational philosophy and practice, has been immensely helpful. He, too, challenged me to think just a bit more about what I was writing: "Well ..
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