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Intersubjectivity

Philosophy
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

Intersubjectivity is the shared understanding or mutual recognition between conscious beings, forming the basis of social reality.

Detailed Definition
Poetry explores intersubjectivity through dialogue, address, or empathy—attempting to bridge inner worlds. Lyric address ("you") or narrative perspective often dramatizes the fragile, necessary connection between self and other in language.
Example
Example in poetry:
Walt Whitman’s "Crossing Brooklyn Ferry" addresses future readers across time, creating intersubjective connection; Adrienne Rich’s "Diving into the Wreck" uses "we" to build feminist solidarity; Ocean Vuong’s "Someday I’ll Love Ocean Vuong" dialogues with the self as another; Paul Celan’s "Deathfugue" forces reader complicity in Holocaust memory, enacting painful intersubjectivity; Emily Dickinson’s dashes create space for the reader’s interpretive presence, implying shared consciousness.
Additional Notes
Intersubjectivity—mutual recognition between selves—is vital for ethical poetry; Levinas saw the “face of the Other” as a call to responsibility; poems using “you” (Oliver, Rich) or dialogue (Browning) test intersubjective possibility; students should analyze whether the poem achieves genuine address or collapses the Other into projection.
Also Known As
Mutual Understanding Shared Consciousness Dialogue (in phenomenological contexts)
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