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1-Page Summary of I and Thou

Overview

I and Thou is a philosophy of human relations. It includes the way we relate to nature, other people, and spiritual matters. The book was originally published in 1923 with three chapters, but an afterword was added in 1957.

In the first chapter, Buber explains his fundamental distinction between I-It and I-You. In the former, people see things as objects to use or experience. In the latter, they’re in a relationship with those things. As our lives progress from infancy to adulthood and beyond, we begin to view more of the world as an object rather than a partner.

In the second chapter, Buber explains that when people are dominated by the It, they feel as if their life has no purpose. They need to develop a sense of self so they can relate to others and have an understanding of who they are. This is not about living in a spiritual world and leaving behind worldly possessions or relationships; it’s about relating to other people in all parts of our lives without being materialistic.

Relating to God is similar to relating to other people. In fact, when we relate with others, we can also be relating with God. This concept is explored in Chapter 3 of Buber’s book where he explains how humans and the divine are one in relation. He uses this idea as a way for us to understand what it means for us to live our lives through relationship because that’s all there really is: relationships between people and between people and their creator (God).

In the Afterword, Buber explains that we can develop relations in any of three realms: nature, humans, and spirits. However, it is with humans that we are closest to a relation with the eternal You because human relations are more obviously reciprocal. That’s because the medium of human relations is language; therefore there’s reciprocity between call and response (I speak you respond I respond to what you spoke). This differs from a relation with a tree which cannot respond in this way. Thus relations with men model relations with God because of their pure reciprocity and mutuality.

Chapter 1

I and Thou begins with a discussion of two different ways of existing. The first way is called “I-It” because the I relates to objects and things in the world. It’s important to note that there is always an I, even when relating to an object or thing. The second way is called “I-You,” which involves direct relation between people without any separation from one another.

Buber says that at any given time, we are either the “I” in the pair I-It or the “I” in the pair I-You. The world of It is a world of experience where we observe things without interacting with them. In contrast, when we interact with something as You, it’s a relational world where we’re active and dynamic.

It’s not that there are two different worlds. It’s more like there are two ways of looking at the same world. I can be an objective observer or a subjective participant. For example, when I study a tree and break it down into its parts, then it becomes an “It” rather than a “You.” When I’m in deep awe of the whole tree without trying to understand it, then it becomes a “You.”

To relate to the world as “You” is to be more present and unmediated. In this case, we are alive with the world rather than recording it in our brains as images of what happened. There is nothing between me and you; there’s no middleman or buffer that prevents us from relating directly. When we perceive something as “you,” it becomes real because we pay attention to it with all of our creative energy. Buber also describes three ways in which people can relate with each other: through nature, humans, and spiritual things like God or Heaven.