Hi Alex,
On 2009-05-04 15:30, Alex Rollin wrote:
I did a quick google search for selbstentfaltung and it all
references you!
Oh cool, it seems to depend on from where you are googling: With german
google.de I am not referenced on the frist page :..-(
Generally searching points to two sources of a defintion: something from
the Oekonux surroundings, because it was originally developed in the
german Oekonux list, and something from esoteric sources with a different
meaning, of course.
Can you help me pick out the words here so I can piece together a
better definition in English?
There was a discussion in the ox-en about how to translate
selbstentfaltung, but finally we decided to use the german word in
english too (literally it would be "self-unfolding" which sounds weird).
Being lazy I translate a good german text from freie-gesellschaft wiki:
http://www.freie-gesellschaft.de/wiki/Selbstentfaltung collected by
Christian, I guess. Here it goes (slightly modified during translation):
###
Selbstentfaltung is a notion which was coined in the Oekonux context
having an individual and a societal dimension. The Individual dimension
addresses the unfolding of own possibilities, the development of the own
personality. The personal unfolding often shows different forms of
expression (productive, reproductive, technical, cultural,
communicative, consumptive etc.), which can be useful for others, thus
being not purely individual.
The societal dimension of selbstentfaltung rests in mutual dependence of
one own's unfolding from the unfolding of the others. The
selbstentfaltung of others is each the condition for the own
selbstentfaltung. Without the selbstentfaltung of others the own
selbstentfaltung is necessarily limited. Therefore, selbstentfaltung on
the costs of others is not possible, because this would damage oneself.
This distinguishes the selbstentfaltung from the self-realization, which
can be done on the costs of others.
Instead of that "a positive feedback is evolving: my striving is
directed to let others unfold, so that I can unfold. If I would solely
concentrate to do what I wish and ignore or exclude others, then I would
harm myself" (http://www.thur.de/philo/ku51.htm)
In this respect the selbstentfaltung of an individual is the immediate
condition for the selbstentfaltung of all -- and vice versa.
The immediateness of the people as the mode of societal mediation is
important, because similar but indirect mediations are realized in
liberalism and capitalism (at least partially): via money, market, state
etc. However, the immediateness does not mean, that societal
relationships build themselves, that one only makes anything and
everything fits together automatically. It only means that society
emerging as stable whole does no longer need indirections, but is
constituted by the people themself via direct communication and
immediate selbstentfaltung. This is a clear separation from e.g.
liberalism, which has a similar claim, but does not only not realize its
claim, but actively prevents it by introducing a mediating separating
layer between the people.
###
Ciao,
Stefan
--
Start here: www.meretz.de
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