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Can We Understand Ourselves?
Author(s) -
Winch Peter
Publication year - 1997
Publication title -
philosophical investigations
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.172
H-Index - 14
eISSN - 1467-9205
pISSN - 0190-0536
DOI - 10.1111/1467-9205.00038
Subject(s) - confusion , parallels , contrast (vision) , epistemology , philosophy , psychology , psychoanalysis , computer science , artificial intelligence , mechanical engineering , engineering
When it is asked if it is ‘possible’ for us to understand alien cultures, a contrast is implied with a certain conception of the understanding we have of our own culture. This contrast has certain parallels with the philosophical ‘problem of other minds’, in which a contrast is also drawn between understanding myself and others. Though these are different questions, they are related — in that somewhat parallel confusion about the notion of ‘understanding’ are involved in both. Our own culture is not in principle transparent to our understanding; neither are other cultures in principle opaque.