The Influence of the Experience of Spiritual Mediums on G. Marcel\u27s Thought

The French Catholic philosopher Gabriel Marcel (1889-1973), noted for his body-mind theory and concept of "I & thou" is known to have had experiences involving spiritual mediums in the days of WW1. His style of thinking is converted from idealism to so-called "philosophic concrete" by these experiences, and his interest in meta-psychology is maintained throughout his lifetime. Marcel\u27s early work Journal metaphysique (1927) contains many pages concerning these experiences, meta-psychology, and the survival of personality. In these pages, he analyzes how the spirit appears to the living and why spiritual medium is essential to communication between the dead and the living. Marcel ponders on the role of spiritual mediums and his musings lead him to his body-mind theory afterwards. Marcel\u27s early speculation on spiritual mediums and the medium\u27s body also bear great influence on his later thought, especially on the concept of "intersubjectivity," which is comes to light after WW2. Although the concept of "intersubjectivity" originally derives from Husserl\u27s phenomenology, Marcel infuses the concept with his own unique meaning. In order to explicate Marcel\u27s "intersubjectivity," I examine the following three concepts apparent in his thought : "passe-sujet," "ambiance spirituelle" and "profondeur." I begin by outlining the concept of "passe-sujet," which is a compound of "past" and "subject," meaning a modality of coexistence and a situation where the pasts of different subjects interpenetrate. So "passe-sujet" can be interpreted as a situation, where clairvoyants (= spiritual mediums) penetrate the other pasts and see spirits. "Ambiance spirituelle" in contrast stands for a kind of a place where spirits can appear and where people can see them. Marcel then depicts an infinite space, as it were, a place of eternity and immortality by the French word "profondeur" which means depth. Thus I demonstrate that Marcel\u27s concept of "intersubjectivity" does not only mean a relationship between the living, but includes a relationship between the dead and living. In this paper I carefully consider the concepts derived from his experience of spiritual mediums, and attempt to elucidate the fundamental nature of his thought on "intersubjectivity.