Hi,
"Anonymous" made some comments recently and, among other things, wrote:
>If this is meant to be a dialogue, might it be a time for a concise
>description of the meaning of dialogue?
I now understand from Rick that "Anonymous" has left us. His or hers was,
I suppose, a rhetorical "question," not offered in the spirit of dialogue.
I had replied to anonymous with:
> I'm interested. Want to give it a try? I wonder, can you do it first
>in your own words without resorting to the "authority" of a dictionary
>or some other source?
Subsequently, in a personal message to me, Rick asked if I might invite
this thread of everyone by expressing my interest in definition and
principles of dialogue to the whole list. What do you think? Is
"dialogue" a topic of interest to anyone else?
As for myself when I replied to "Anonymous," I was as much interested in
other things -- in painting a rich picture around "dialogue," through
dialogue -- as I was in "defining" dialogue per se.
What tickled me initially about replying to "Anonymous" was curiosity with
regard to authenticity and sureness (identity-categoricity), re the person
behind the original message. Could I have a dialogue with "Anonymous?"
Second, I was intrigued by "Anonymous's" seemingly reductionist interest
in a "concise definition." And third, I was thinking about the learning
potential of coming up with one's own definition (and possibly inviting
others to do the same) versus simply relying on an external "authority"
such as a dictionary or celebrity.
In my thinking, I also was intrigued by the relationship of "Anonymous" to
the ideas "authentic," "authority," and "author." I understand, for
example, from having lived in China for several years, how possible it is
for people in different cultures to regard "intellectual property,"
"authorship," and "authenticity" quite differently than we do in the West.
I thought it easily might be possible that some of these things would
emerge in dialogue with "Anonymous," but I wasn't wedded to that outcome.
Any thoughts?
Grins,
--Dan Chay chay@alaska.com http://www.learning-communities.com
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