Is It Too Late to Ask, “What Is Empathy?”

Is the person that is speaking relatively known or relatively unknown to us? 

• Do we hear their words, or do we hear them (their person)?
• As we listen, how do we determine if we hear or neglect their words?
• As we listen, how do we determine if we hear or neglect their person?

As we listen, do we apprehend the transcendent?

• Do their words obscure their person from us? Or do we hear their person?
• To the extent we know them, are either their words or person obscured by our knowledge of them?
• To the extent we know them, do we hear our projections instead of them and their words?

Is our history (personal or professional) in the way of hearing? 

• Do we hear with quality?
• Do we hear with coherence?

• Are we hearing the person’s desired outcome instead of hearing their person?
• Does our desired outcome for them obscure us from hearing their words? Or from hearing their person?

• What theory, tradition, or discipline of theirs is in their way?
• What theory, tradition, or discipline of ours is in our way?

• Are we employing an objective arrangement instead of listening?
• Are we hearing, or only following a narrative of words?

What is being said? 
What is the person saying?

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Inspired by a fresh reading of:

Foucault, M.  (1969).  What Is An Author?  Lecture given at the Collège de France.