Flores (2013), Conversations For Action and Collected Essays puts forward thirteen fundamental concerns which make up my life as a member of Western society. Each is with me at all times and I cannot escape them. I may only pay attention when a Breakdown occurs, triggering a need to engage in Concernful activity.
The domains are Distinctions useful in understanding the facticity of life. They are not the truth.
A linguistic being
I am a linguistic being and I cannot avoid having these five domains because I participate in Language.
- Body: I exist wholly as a body. Without my body I cannot participate in any activity involving Language.1 I am limited when my body is not as resourceful as I need (illness, wrong location).
- Play: Is unintentional, often directionless activity that allows me to escape conscious, Concernful activity. Yet play itself can also be intentional for Sociability or Body reasons. When I am exploring a new topic or practising a new skill for my own enjoyment, I always refer to that type of Education as play.
- Sociability: My participation in a world of other people so that we can hold Conversations for coordination of action to make Requests, Offers and Promises to take care each others Core concerns.
- Family: My family is a network of shared concerns. I sometimes have to subsume one of my concerns to support another. This occurs at a level deeper than it would in the broader community.
- Work: The Promise outcomes generated through Sociability result in work; the completion of the action necessary to meet what was promised. My work influences how others observe me how I observe myself (my Dignity).
A historical being
My time in history means I am unable to avoid conversations about the following five domains.
- Education: My education creates Distinctions which allow me to observe differently and thereby take more powerful actions. My competency in executing those actions and successful, ongoing participation in the world, comes from my education.
- Career: Whereas Education gives me the skills to participate in life, my career is the evolving process of managing a direction for my life as a being distinguished from others.
- Money: Security my Body and Sociability involve money and so it is a concern in my life. My ability to generate money comes from my Work, Education and Career.
- Membership: Increases the possibility for taking care of my other concerns. My membership in a community, workplace, or other social situation creates possibilities I might not otherwise have access to. Membership also offers me protections, such as immediate access to high-quality medical care for my Body.
- The World: I am concerned about what happens in the world for both the impact it has on me, but also because I recognise that even people I don’t know are Legitimate others and I should avoid taking action to their detriment whenever possible.
An individual being
I am an individual being, and some domains are mine alone to contend with.
- Dignity: I want to be recognised as valuable in my existence. Dignity is the Assessment I make of myself for any endeavour (including my whole life) and if that has been valuable or not. It is an assessment against the standards I set for myself.
- Situation: I carry with me an Assessment of my situation which reflects the possibility I see for doing positive good in the world. When I am in a “bad situation”2 I cannot take care of my concerns and so am primarily concerned with the situation I am in. The question is, “How do I move to a better situation.”
- Spirituality: I am an observer of the Facticity of life. I’ve been born. I will die. In between I have my Core concerns to take care of. At the same time I am in Wonder at what life is, what may come after, and the ultimate question, “Why?”