Ontotheological Turnings? Marion, Lacoste and Levinas on the Decentring of Modern Subjectivity

Abstract

In this article, Schrijvers examines the decentering of the modern subject at issue in the thought of Emmanuel Levinas, Jean‐Luc Marion, and Jean‐Yves Lacoste from the perspective of ontotheology. Schrijvers contends that in both Marion's and Lacoste's phenomenology an unexpected return to the subject‐object distinction occurs, and asks whether a simple reversal of the subject‐object distinction suffices to break out of the ontotheological scheme. In a second move, Levinas’ account of a “relation without relation” is developed as a solution to the problem perceived in the works of Marion and Lacoste. Via a critique of Levinas, Schrijvers suggests that what is at stake in reversing the subject‐object distinction entails less an “overcoming” of ontotheology and more a matter of comporting oneself towards it in an appropriate way.

Givenness, Saturation, and the Self: A Phenomenology of Christian Initiation

“…According to these readings, Marion's self serves no other purpose than to be the screen onto which these phenomena are projected. 11 Yet despite protestations on Marion's part against the illegitimacy of this avenue of critique, other commentators have similarly highlighted the ambiguity of the passive/active opposition latent throughout Marion's work or criticized his lack of hermeneutic grounding for the self (Kearney 2005;Gschwandtner 2014;Serban 2012;Schrijvers 2006). Such critiques all seek to temper Marion's more radical emphasis on the primacy of the givenness of phenomena by reclaiming the context, capacities, and role of the self beyond mere reception.…”