Page "Cosmopolitanism" Paragraph 8

For Derrida, the foundation of ethics is hospitality, the readiness and the inclination to welcome the Other into one's home.

Ethics, he claims, is hospitality.

Pure, unconditional hospitality is a desire that underscores the conditional hospitality necessary in our relationships with others.

Levinas's and Derrida's theories of ethics and hospitality hold out the possibility of an acceptance of the Other as different but of equal standing.

Isolation is not a feasible alternative in the world, therefore, it is important to consider how best to approach these interactions, and to determine what is at stake for ourselves and the others: what conditions of hospitality to impose, and whether or not we have responded to the call of the Other.

Further, both theories reveal the importance of considering how best to interact with the Other and others, and what is at stake.