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Document Details :

Title: Self-Reflective Talk and Modern Anxiety
Author(s): PATTYN, Bart
Journal: Ethical Perspectives
Volume: 5    Issue: 2   Date: June 1998   
Pages: 144-154
DOI: 10.2143/EP.5.2.563095

Abstract :
Whoever wants to pursue just social reforms, breathe new life into political democracy, and improve the welfare of the weak will have to do more than convince people to speak differently about themselves. The first ailment that must be cured is not an improper use of language, but the anxiety that gives rise to that language.

Anxiety cannot be removed by socially uninspired philosophies. Anxiety is not a problem of individuals but of society’s consciousness. The individualistic attitude of the dominant group of Anglo-Saxon thinkers has hitherto hindered any consideration of group mentality. There is too little known about the processes at work in this trans-individual domain.

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