ABSTRACT

This chapter explores the dynamics of shame as they relate to temporality. It explores the double-edged sword that is 'shame', then utilizes the unique philosophy of time offered by Emmanuel Levinas to explore the psychological and ethical dynamics of shame. The chapter explores the relationship between time and shame to unlock the differences between these two types of shame, which is crucial for thinking about shame psychologically and philosophically. Shame is a surging interest in the psychological dynamics of shame, as clinicians and scholars demonstrate a growing awareness of the way that shame is both vital and dangerous. Diachronic shame can create the opening to one's own humanity, to that which is truest about the ego. To be a human person, according to Levinas, is to be caught in the time before time, in the joy and the need of the other person. Shame, properly understood, points to hope, for it harkens to a past prior to conflict and violence.