Edward Sampson’s Celebrating the Other in the Era of Technology-Bound Identity

In his book, Celebrating the Other: A Dialogic Account of Human Nature, Edward Sampson critiques the individualistic emphasis in Western culture and science, which posits that humans generate identities through a self-celebratory monologue, proclaiming themselves heroic protagonists. Sampson, instead, emphasizes a dialogic approach in which individuals are not self-contained entities, but mutually influential entities whose voices are given equal weight. This talk discussed how the dynamics of self and other celebration (or denial) are transforming.