The Other Side of Language

Our philosophy is grounded in only half a language, in which the power of discourse is deployed whilst the strength of listening is ignored. We inhabit a culture that knows how to speak but not how to listen; so we mistake warring monologues for genuine dialogue. Western philosophies have consistently endowed expressive language with the power of communication, reducing the unspeaking, non-expressive Other to a void. In this remarkable book, Gemma Corradi Fiumara redresses the balance by looking at the other side of language--listening. Synthesizing the insights of Wittgenstein, Heidegger and Gadamer, among many others, she puts forward a powerful argument for the replacement of "silent" silence of Western thought with the rich openness of an authentic listening.

Gemma Corradi Fiumara is Associate Professor of Philosophy at the Third University of Rome.