kerekh 1. Ekh le-ehov yeled. Regaʻim ḥinukhiyim. Zekhut ha-yeled li-khevod -- kerekh 2. Prozah piyuṭit -- kerekh 3. Sipure ha-ḳaiṭanut -- kerekh 4. Yalde reḥov ṿe-yeled ha-ṭeraḳlin -- kerekh 5. ha-Tehilah ṿe-sipurim aḥadim -- kerekh 7. Humoresḳot u-filiṭonim, 2. -- kerekh 8. Ka-asher ashuv ṿe-ehyeh ḳaṭan. Bet ha-sefer shel ha-ḥayim -- kerekh 9. kelale ha-ḥayim, itonaʼut li-yeladim.

We can view Janusz Korczak’s concept of “deciphering hieroglyphs” as an imperative for us to leave our own conceptual world and become open to the mystery and “Otherness” of the other. According to Emmanuel Levinas, the relationship with another person is also a mystery that escapes all definitions and demands attitudes to be revised—in order for there to be a readiness to be open to that Otherness. Such openness is a kind of hermeneutical approach and a particular interpretation (...) which is the polar opposite of analytical cognition. Levinas and Ouaknin call this interpretation a “caress”, which is the subject’s way of being when confronted with the Other. There is evidence to suggest that Korczak’s approach to children and the role of the educator are very similar to Levinas’ idea of “caress”. (shrink)

Essay delivered at 4th Embassy of Poland Annual Lecture, University of Ottawa, on November 6, 2002. It renders main studies on Janusz Korczak published in special issues of Dialogue and Universalism (nos. 9-10/1997, 9-10/2001), putting emphasis on the philosophical dimensions of Korczak’s vision of society.

Autorinnen und Autoren aus Polen, Deutschland, Österreich, der Schweiz, den Niederlanden, Israel und Kanada legen in den Beiträgen dieses Bandes ihre neuesten Forschungsergebnisse vor. Im ersten Teil nähern sie sich unter spezifischen Fragestellungen der Person und dem Werk Janusz Korczaks. Der zweite Teil befasst sich mit seiner erzieherischen Praxis und zeigt, welche Elemente der Pädagogik Korczaks in der gegenwärtigen Erziehungspraxis von entscheidender Bedeutung sind.