Erotic Face and Ethical Face After Levinas


François-David Sebbah
University of Technology, Compiègne, France

Levinas' thought, concerning the interlacing themes of the Face, the Feminine, Eroticism and Ethics, is particularly dense and complex. This article aims at putting this thought to the test of a contemporary preoccupation: the total veiling of women’s bodies. This has become an issue in some Western countries, especially in France. What can Levinas’ thought teach us about the obligation, imposed exclusively on women, to appear in public only if the body—and in particular the Face—is completely veiled? And conversely, what can the attempt to elucidate the meaning of this behaviour teach us about the difficulties, the ambiguities, but also the resources of Levinas’ thought?

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© borderlands ejournal 2010