Subjectivity

“As subjects, we don’t want to be alone in our subjectivity.”

Definition

Subjectivity refers to the condition of being a subject — the first-person perspective from which experience unfolds. It is both a philosophical problem (how do we know what we know?) and an existential condition (we are alone in our consciousness yet seek connection).

Key Aspects

  • Solitude: We are fundamentally alone in our subjective experience
  • Relation: We seek to share subjectivity through relation with others
  • Subject-Object: The relationship between subject and object is itself a third term worth examining
  • Mediation: Experience is always mediated by our position as subjects

Dialectical Tension

The paradox of subjectivity: we try to escape our solitude by relating to others, but in the end we always find ourselves. This is not failure but the fundamental structure of consciousness.


“I tried to relate to others — but in the end I always found myself.”