Martin Buber...I think

Garrett Lambur
Before this semester I had never been exposed Martin Buber’s I and Thou and I found it to be quite an interesting subject. In all honesty at first I struggled to wrap my mind around the idea of an I and it relationship and a I and you relationship, there was something very foreign in the idea for me. What still somewhat boggles my mind is the idea of an I and you relationship as the relationship between I and the “wholly other” but that it cannot be named for that makes the relationship an I, it, and destroys the relationship. To justify my understanding of this I have to put the idea of I and it and I and you into context for myself. I understand these may not be exactly what Buber was saying but it is how I interpreted it. An I and it relationship is one that relates more to a possessive nature of an inanimate object. There is no two-way path were emotions or feelings are shared between the two. The relationship does not allow for any sort of positive growth as a human being, the relationship is seen as a means to an end. In contrast, the I and you relationship is one that does not exist based upon material possessions. It can allow for personal growth as a human being as you share a relationship. There is no ability to possess the you, the you is, it exists beyond a means to an end, there is more than just trade of something in return for something wanted. Only in these contexts does the idea that as soon as you attempt to name a relationship with God does it become an I and it relationship. For as soon as you name it an it relationship you are attempting to quantify the relationship, which is not possible in an I and you relationship. The I and you relationship simply exists and allows for growth but cannot be labeled, it just has to be accepted.

Buber stated that people only usually see people as It’s and not You’s which I believe is mostly true. In my life I cannot think of many relationships that I have that do not fall outside of the It realm. I always seem to attempt in my head to quantify my friendship with people, to question it, how strong is it, what would they do for me and what would I do for them? By doing so I am immediately attempting to quantify it. I would like to think that my relationship with my parents is an I and You relationship but there are times where I find myself quantifying it. I have to say that I see their view of the relationship to me is I and you, I am their son, nothing else matters, they would love me no matter what happens in my life. Of course I cannot truly know if it is such a relationship but I hope it is. The more I attempt to think about this subject the more confused I make myself for just by thinking about I and you it seems I would be degrading such a relationship thus making all relationships in my life I and it, which I view as a sad thing. I can say that after pondering this, philosophy is not my strong point for this is not the first thing I have struggled with attempting to understand.