Persons in relation

by John Macmurray

This is the 2nd volume of Prof. Macmurray's Gifford Lectures on The Form of the Personal. The 1st volume, The Self as Agent, was concerned to shift the center of philosophy from thought to action. Persons in Relation, starting from this practical standpoint, sets out to show that the form of personal life is determined by the mutuality of personal relationship, so that the unit of human life is not the "I" alone, by the "You & I."

Genres: Philosophy, Anthropology, Theology, Nonfiction, Psychology

235 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1961

About the author

John Macmurray MC was a Scottish philosopher. His thought moved beyond the modern tradition begun by Descartes and continued in Britain by Locke, Berkeley and Hume. He made contributions in the fields of political science, religion, education, and philosophy in a long career of writing, teaching, and public speaking. After retirement he became a Quaker.

Reviews

[Maria Kemplin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Persons in Relation argues that personhood is not an attribute held in isolation but something that comes into being through mutual, trust-grounded relationship. Macmurray is especially attentive to how fear and control (in my opinion, deeply embedded in social and institutional life) deform relationship and lead to withdrawal rather than engagement.

Read this way, individualism appears less as a freestanding ideology than as an adaptation to attenuated forms of “community” that demand compliance without reciprocity. Macmurray offers no easy solutions, but he does establish a clear ethical standard - relationships that fail to recognize people as agents do not sustain personhood, they erode it.

A demanding but clarifying book, particularly for readers uneasy with uncritical appeals to “community.”

[Robert Christian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Did not find parts very helpful, but a number of excellent original insights.