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Intimacy Definition

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them. They are a protection from outside threats. Sometimes people erect emotional walls to protect themselves from the encroachment of others upon their personal space. They are afraid that if someone enters their personal space, that someone might cause harm or dominate them. But if there is no threat from another, there is no need to erect these emotional walls. In fact there is joy in allowing someone to share one's own personal space. Sharing this space in a non-threatening way is called intimacy. It is natural for a rational, free person to long for intimacy and to rejoice in it. Intimacy requires no emotional walls, yet intimacy still implies consideration of personal borders, that is, the point at which one person leaves off and another begins. Recognizing and respecting these boundaries goes to the very heart of a person's sense of identity and self-worth. …show more content…

Naturally the person feels violated. That person would have no negative concerns had he or she voluntarily shared his or her food. But to have someone take it without permission is experienced as a disrespect of the owner's dignity because the food was identified with the owner, and to take it is to disrespect the owner's personal sovereignty. This feeling of being put upon stems from a person's natural sense of having a personal space, which refers directly to that person's unique self. This space defines where a person's self-determination and self-management reside. It marks a person's unique way of being in the world, that is, his or her autonomy, and it authorizes a person to speak of what's in this personal space as

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