“The Self,” “I,” and “a Single-Consciousness-and-‘I’”
Klaus G. Witz, Hyunju Lee
Qualitative Inquiry July 1, 2013 DOI: 10.1177/1077800413482095 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Qualitative Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Key points | Argues that Witz and Goodwin's conception of a single consciousness-and-"I" across the lifespan implies a universal human nature marked by continuous, abundant subjective experience of "I" or "self-feeling" occurring on scales of seconds, minutes, and hours, and that these processes are in near-oneness with the individual's unfolding self-understanding and higher moral and metaphysical quests. Contends this conception can enlarge how qualitative research and inquiry understand the human being. |
Abstract
This article discusses some thrusts and implications of Witz and Goodwin’s (2012) conception of “a single consciousness-and-‘I’ from childhood to old age” for getting a much larger understanding of the human being in Qualitative Research and Inquiry. Already portraiture tacitly assumes the human being to be essentially unlimited and capable of being subjectively understood by empathy and reflection (Section 1). The bulk of the article argues that the conception of the single consciousness-and-“I” explicates a vision of universal human nature. Namely, it suggests that there is an astronomical amount of subjective experience of “I” (or of “I being,” “I-feeling,” “self-feeling”) that goes on in a person on a scale of seconds, minutes, hours every day and that there is a harmony, a unity, almost oneness between these processes and the unfolding in the individual of self-understanding and higher (moral, metaphysical) aspects and other “quests” connected with this (Section 3).