prompt for week of 4/19--2nd reading in Whistleblowers

Again, the purpose of this prompt is to encourage you to think about textual concepts in relation to your work with the community (as this is what the final paper is all about!)--at the same time, the expectation is that the class discussion will engage many more points in the reading. The more textual concepts that you can bring into your posting, the better, but we will be covering more in the class discussion then you probably be able to unpack in this blog.

Alford talks about Arendt's "suspicion" that ethical behavior is grounded in our imaginative ability to "take others into account"(60). What Arendt means is that although we are subjective beings and can only experience reality through our own set of conditions--we have the capacity to imaginatively project ourselves into the reality of others. Thus, identification, humanization of the other, becomes a source of or motivation for ethical behavior.

Alford elaborates on the whistleblower's challenge using Buber's idea that "empathy is like a bridge, thrown from 'self-being to self-being across the abyss of the dread of the universe.'" He adds that for whistleblowers, "one end of this bridge must be supported by an imaginary abutment" (60). He uses the experience of the rescuer to unpack this distinction, explaining that unlike the rescuer who deals with particular persons, the whistleblower is driven to act by abstract ideals, not the concrete presence of the other.

He goes back to this idea at the end of Chapter 5: "Morality stems from empathy, in which we are deeply affected by the sufferings of others. . . It is easy to feel empathy for the sufferings of others, even when fear and ideology often team up to muffle this feeling." He sums up: "In a sense morality is easy, if by morality we mean feeling empathy and concern for others. What is difficult is acting on this basis when the self must pay a terrible price. . ." (95).

Of course, we don't all have to be whistleblowers and sacrifice all that is good in our lives for our ego-ideal--the values that we believe make our life worth living. In the service that you do for this class, hopefully you have more to gain than to lose--especially as the hope is that this experience, if nothing else, will deepen your learning in this class.

There are many different ways you could go with this prompt--if you are doing indirect service, you might reflect on the resources you have drawn on to address a larger ethical concept than that embodied in the presence/suffering of another individual. Even if you are doing direct service, you might find the larger issue to be the true motivator.

Or, you might describe the ways in which you have experienced that bridging to another human being or a cause that Buber describes. Or, you might reflect on the ways you have seen others do so in your service. Or, you might think about what you or others you work with sacrifice for shared ideals.

Basically, I am hoping you will think about your own resources for ethical action, and/or what motivates those you serve with, and how you or someone you serve with bridges the gap between nice idea and lived reality. . .