Poetics of Hospitality: Thinking Peace with Derrida as an Unconditional Openness to what is To Come

Derrida wonders about the concept of peace in the works of Levinas. Unlike Kant who presupposes an initial state of nature or war, for Levinas everything seems to begin with absolute welcome of the other. The first words used to describe hospitality (hospes, hostis, hospitium) in Celtic and Latin, evoke hospitality toward enemies and strangers. During periods of war, hospitality was seen as an alternative to end hostility: welcoming strangers and treating one’s former enemies humanely. Kant asserts that perpetual world peace will only become a reality when universal hospitality becomes the norm. According to the German philosopher, international law must establish the necessary conditions for a universal culture of hospitality, which transforms all men into citizens of our common world. Derrida invites us to reflect on unconditional hospitality which goes beyond hospitality as a right meeting certain conditions laid down by the host. In this sense, peace grows through hospitality. Hence this paper is a modest attempt to show the necessity for us to meditatively journey with the Derrida on the path of unconditional hospitality in order to experience peace.