Jorge Larrosa - La experiencia - Parte 1

Key Concepts

Experiencia (Experience), Lo que nos pasa (What happens to us), Exterioridad (Exteriority), Alteridad (Otherness), Alienación (Alienation), Subjetividad (Subjectivity), Reflexividad (Reflexivity), Transformación (Transformation), Exposición (Exposure), Formación (Formation).

1. Defining Experience and its Resonance

The speaker begins by defining "experiencia" (experience) not just as a word, but as a concept to be explored through its "sonoridad particular" (particular sonority). The goal is to create a "espacio de resonancia" (resonance space) around the word, allowing it to resonate with other words and ideas. This approach is intentionally abstract, aiming to connect with the audience's personal experiences and their commitment to teaching.

Key Point: Experience is not just a passive occurrence but an active engagement that resonates with personal meaning.

2. Experience as "Lo Que Nos Pasa" (What Happens to Us)

The speaker defines experience as "lo que nos pasa" (what happens to us), emphasizing that life is a continuous flow of events and our attempts to make sense of them. He instructs the audience to write "experiencia" and then "lo que nos pasa" on a piece of paper, setting the stage for exploring the concept further.

Key Point: Experience is the raw material of life, the events that shape us.

3. The "Lo" of "Lo Que Nos Pasa": Exteriority, Alterity, and Alienation

The speaker delves into the "lo" (the "what") of "lo que nos pasa," arguing that experience always involves something external to oneself. He introduces three key terms:

Exterioridad (Exteriority): The "ex" in "experiencia" connects to "exterior," "extranjero" (foreign), "extrañeza" (strangeness), "exilio" (exile), and "éxtasis" (ecstasy). Experience requires the appearance of something external, strange, and foreign.
Alteridad (Otherness): Experience involves an "otro" (other), something different from oneself. The speaker references Foucault's work on how institutions often attempt to capture and destroy alterity by naming, defining, and identifying everything.
Alienación (Alienation): In this context, alienation refers to something "ajeno" (foreign) or "ajenidad" (foreignness) – something that cannot be fully owned or appropriated by the individual.
Example: The speaker uses the example of the school as an institution that often tries to eliminate ambiguity and impose order, thus hindering genuine experience. He quotes a friend who says, "El otro nunca está en el lugar que yo le doy pero a pesar de eso debo darle un lugar" (The other is never in the place I give them, but despite that, I must give them a place).
Key Point: True experience requires encountering something external, different, and not fully controllable.

4. From "Lo Que Pasa" to "Lo Que Nos Pasa": Subjectivity, Reflexivity, and Transformation

The speaker contrasts "lo que pasa" (what happens) with "lo que nos pasa" (what happens to us), emphasizing the importance of personal impact. He introduces three more key terms:

Subjetividad (Subjectivity): Experience is always subjective, but it requires a subject who is open, sensitive, and vulnerable – a subject capable of letting something affect their thoughts, feelings, and beliefs.
- Key Point: The speaker emphasizes the importance of "apertura" (openness), "vulnerabilidad" (vulnerability), and "sensibilidad" (sensitivity) as qualities of the experiencing subject. He connects "sensibilidad" to the Greek word "estesis," linking it to both aesthetics and anesthesia, arguing that the world is full of "sujetos anestesiados" (anesthetized subjects) who are incapable of genuine experience.
- Key Point: The speaker introduces the concept of "exposición" (exposure), arguing that only a subject who is willing to expose themselves to what happens can truly experience it.
Reflexividad (Reflexivity): Experience involves a "movimiento de ida y vuelta" (movement of going and returning). The subject goes out to encounter something external, but that encounter must then "rebotar" (bounce back) and affect the subject in some way.
Transformación (Transformation): The subject of experience is fundamentally open to transformation – to changing their ideas, words, feelings, and representations. Experience forms or transforms the subject.
Key Point: Experience is not just about what happens, but about how it affects and changes us.

5. The Paradox of Transmitting Experience

The speaker addresses the challenge of transmitting experiential knowledge. He argues that while experience is ultimately personal ("la experiencia es para cada cual la suya" - experience is for each their own), it is not a solitary endeavor. We learn from the experiences of others.

Quote: The speaker quotes Cada Marca, "la experiencia no se le puede ahorrar a nadie" (experience cannot be spared to anyone).
Example: The speaker uses the example of the mentor-mentee relationship in teaching, suggesting that experienced teachers can help novice teachers elaborate their own experiences, not dictate them. He also uses the example of his relationship with his father, stating that he is not what his father wanted him to be, but he owes much of who he is to his father.
Key Point: The transmission of experience is paradoxical: it cannot be directly transferred, but it can be facilitated through guidance and shared reflection.

6. Experience and Transformation: Avoiding Dogmatism

The speaker emphasizes that experience should not lead to dogmatism. The more experience one has, the more open one should be to transformation. Experience should lead to an awareness of one's own fragility and the limitations of one's knowledge.

Key Point: True experience is the experience of one's own fragility and the openness to transformation.

Synthesis/Conclusion

The speaker presents a nuanced view of experience as a dynamic process involving an encounter with the external world, personal reflection, and the potential for transformation. He emphasizes the importance of openness, vulnerability, and a willingness to be changed by what happens to us. He also highlights the paradoxical nature of transmitting experiential knowledge, arguing that while experience is ultimately personal, it can be facilitated through guidance and shared reflection. The ultimate goal is to avoid dogmatism and embrace the ongoing process of learning and transformation.