Beyond universalism and relativism: overcoming the ‘Western’ epistemological framework from within

In this article, I critically consider some of the most relevant dichotomies elaborated during Western modernity – universalism/relativism, subject/object, Self/Other, the West/the Rest, culture/nature – to show how they have come to establish themselves as the product of a dualistic epistemological paradigm and attitude. My main point is that dualism should be overcome by means of achieving a clear self-awareness, emerging from within ‘the West’ through an individually shaped path that should mainly aim at freeing ourselves from the bonds of modern dualistically shaped thinking and attitude. Such move might especially contribute to increasingly successful interactions, or ‘communication’, between individuals collocated all over the globe and no longer understood as ‘the Others’.