Da reciprocidade à mutualidade: a questão da assimetria em Ricoeur

Abstract

The thesis examines the issue of Paul Ricoeur s original asymmetry. We defend the thesis that the precedence of asymmetry of mutuality before the symmetry of reciprocity safeguard simultaneously both otherness as the irreplaceability of each person, through mutual recognition. Sustaining this thesis implies, on one hand, to show that symmetry should not be disregarded, since this concept is essential for the establishment of ethics, moral and right. On the other hand, it means considering the possibility of suspension of the struggle for recognition through actual experiences of mutual recognition, symbolized by the exchange of gifts between protagonists; and to pass, thereby, from negativity to positivity, in such a way that the contempt and denial do not reduce the recognition to an original unfamiliarity. Finally, it implies to give priority to the person before the norm, i.e., to ensure that the mutuality of the relationship is not dissolved by the impersonal character of the reciprocity logic.