The Call of Conscience

Abstract

Although it is common to speak of the call of conscience, the specifically linguistic character of this call is frequently occluded in the history of thought. This is clear in the modern history of the idea, in which ideas of moral intuition or moral sentiment predominate, from Cambridge Platonism through to neo-Kantianism. This occlusion is flagged by Gerhard Ebeling, who emphasizes the word-event character of conscience. This is further developed through reference to Emmanuel Levinas and his distinction between Le Dit and Le Dire, and it is contrasted with the seemingly silent ethical demand proposed by K. E. Løgstrup. This difference is interpreted further through a discussion of an incident in writings of the Japanese poet Bashō and the Good Samaritan.