Full Idea
Levinas forwarded a notion of 'ethics as first philosophy' that begins from the concete exposure and openness to 'the face' of the other, an experience of vulnerability and suffering that undercuts our ordinary egoistic and objectifying tendencies.
Gist of Idea
Levinas took 'first philosophy' to begin with seeing the vulnerable faces of others
Source
report of Emmanuel Levinas (works [1956]) by Kevin Aho - Existentialism: an introduction 1 'Existentialism'
Book Reference
Aho,Kevin: 'Existentialism: an introduction' [Polity 2014], p.14
A Reaction
Iris Murdoch speaks of seeing a falcon in flight as having a similar effect of diminishing the ego. If the main focus is on potential 'suffering' does this eventually cash out as utilitarianism? I bet not!
Related Ideas
Idea 549 All philosophy begins from wonder, either at the physical world, or at ideas [Aristotle]
Idea 20742 The real subject is ethical, not cognitive [Kierkegaard]