From dealing with the other. Adolph Freiherr von Knigges’s “Über den Umgang mit Menschen” (1788) as a contribution to a current discussion

Abstract

This essay relates “Über den Umgang mit Menschen” (1788) (“On Human Relations”)—a publication of a representative of the Age of Enlightenment, Adolph Freiherr von Knigge—to the current discussion on how to handle “otherness.” Knigge’s work aspires to react to traditional popular prejudices towards other human beings by rational argument. His ideas are based on his assumption that only through a friendly attitude towards oneself may people develop manners of behaviour that ultimately contribute to understanding others. The topic is addressed following three steps. Part 1 challenges Knigge’s common reception that tends to reduce his message to simple rules of conduct of behaviour. Part 2 reconstructs Knigge’s main thesis that respect towards others results from respecting yourself. Part 3 examines Knigge’s request to critically question yourself. The other person you encounter is to be viewed in the light of examining your own conscience.

Embedded into my questions are references to current representatives of the Age of Enlightenment (Kant, Hegel). These references necessarily had to be reduced so as to not exceed the scope of this essay. The same applies to comparing Knigge to various literary works at the end of the article. Independent of Knigge’s publication you find references to Knigge’s work in the world literature (Dostojevski, Thomas Mann, F. Scott Fitzgerald) that take up Knigge’s demand for critical self-reflection.