Searching for relationship. Eros as a model of intersubjective relation in approach of Michel Henry and Christos Yannaras

It is paradoxical that the philosophical approach to relations initially did not refer to the intersubjective sphere at all. Moreover, in the metaphysical interpretation, the relation is something derived from what it binds. The issue of intersubjectivity received initial consideration only in the second half of the 19th century, and thanks to phenomenology, especially French, it came to the fore. After rejecting Husserl’s concept of knowing the Other as Alter ego, it was in this environment that the main models of interpersonal relations were developed, among which the erotic phenomenon occupies a significant place. The paper presents the erotic relationship in two perspectives: by Michel Henry and Christos Yannaras, which seem prima facie contradictory, but they complement and illuminate each other in an interesting way. For both philosophers, the erotic relationship is the primary way of experiencing life, and its foundation is desire. Both are convinced that Eros is a tragic relation, testifying to our finite condition. In both, the descriptions of the erotic relationship are extremely realistic, including in it also conflict and suffering. Both perform the deconstruction of the ego, which manifests itself in the event of love. Finally, both develop the phenomenology of life and place relationship at its heart. Thanks to the juxtaposition of Henry’s and Yannaras’s descriptions, the erotic relationship appears as both necessary and impossible, and thus as a paradox.